..:: 638. The One With Top 8 ::..
first off, adam was as usual A-M-A-Z-I-N-G. i always knew when he was the last few to perform, somehow the last few performers always performed superbly.
flashback: Votes (judges plus me)
black or white: 11/13 (5/5)
ring of fire: 5/11 (3.5/5)
tracks of my tears: 8/10 (5/5)
play that funky music: 8/9 (5/5)
mad world: 8/8 (5/5)
this week, all the judges gave standing ovation for adam. as far as i know, simon cowell never stood up for a contestant ever in the show for 8 seasons. i just cant wait for him to say what he told carrie underwood when she was in the top 4 show (i think) that "you have done enough to win this competition"
every week adam produced something special and i believe everyone looks forward to his performance, see what stunts he can pull up.
this week the contestants sang songs from the year they were born. was it challenge? no. most of them were born in the 80s which danny gokey was the oldest (1980) and the rest ranged around 82-86, only allison iraheta was 1992.
most memorable ones for me were Matt Giraud and Adam Lambert. However, i heard that those in the US using the DVDR were not able to capture adam's performance fully as the show overran. I dont think he will suffer in terms of votes though since i predict he has a strong fan base.
Now the fun part. guess who's the bottom three or the one most likely to be eliminated.
Group stages winner and wildcard: number of times in bottom 3
Group 1:
danny gokey
alexie grace (out)
michael sarver (out)
Group 2: strongest
adam lambert
allison iraheta (2)
kris allen
Group 3:
lil rounds
scott macintyre (1)
jorge nunez (out)
Wildcard:
matt giraud (1)
anoop desai (1)
megan joy (out)
jasmine murray (out)
Most likely to be in bottom 3:
anoop (ok but not great, may be sent back to safety)
lil (have yet to prove her ability, kept choosing wrong songs)
scott (bad performance)
i got a feeling its time for scott to go.
if lil gets the boot, i am not sure if the judges will use the "save" option as they might wanna keep it for allison instead cos she showed more potential but also one who keeps hovering in the bottom 3. i think allison should be safe this week, based on records, she is safe from bottom 3 when she delivers outstanding performance like in top 10. hopefully when randy jackson compared her to kelly clarkson, her votes can go up. she is as risky as anoop.
i dont think matt should get bottom 3 cos last week he didnt do as well for a song by the frays but he was safe. i think he is building his fan base slowly.
the top 3 in the end i think would be adam, danny and kris. but kris may end up bottom 3 to shock the audience cos he did quite badly this week, however he will definitely not be eliminated.
stay tuned for the results...
Wednesday, April 08, 2009
..:: 637. The One With Happy Moments ::..
ok shall blog about happy moments. i guess there is still a collectivist part of me where guilt is killing me! arghz.
decided to write this jiayi-inspired entry summing up my 3 years in NBS.
actually my uni life started with joining the sports club which was the right choice for an explosive start to school. everyone was so "on" and crazy. our group was not the strongest physically but we have smart people in our team so we won quite a lot of challenges. one of the more memorable ones was coming in 4th out of 16 teams in the 2-day amazing race. i could still remember some of the stations that we had:
1. kbox at cck lot one where the clue was an indian word that translated to cck.
2. tiong bahru market to finish one basin of rice! we apparently lost to a group of big eaters
3. kallang to do dragonboat and the clue was sign language. difficult!
4. bedok interchange food center... had to link words to buy different types of food
5. pit stop: pasir ris park and we slept over in tents.
the next morning:
1. east coast park to try the 360ski
2. west coast recreation centre to play bowling and forfeit to drink some weird stuff based on the no. of pins missed
3. qian hu fishing farm. drew lots to see how many different colour small fishes we had to catch. it was so difficult. needed a lot of patience.
the next most fun activity was the night trail at the old changi general hospital. i must applaud the acting skills of the seniors and the prop set up. all the calefare acted as wondering ghosts really gave us the chills and screams. still remembered one of the guys freaked out and ran out of the room. that was how scary.
the camp was also a platform for me to join the organising committee of surf and sweat which was a major national event that ntu sports club organises. learnt a lot from there and i had the honour of doing the explanation of the whole rundown of the event to all the participants despite having to do it for like at least 50 times.
Year 1 Sem 1
AB105 - Organizational Behavior & Design
it was quite amazing how the group was formed. random. started off with me and my marketing grp mate jiayi, then came a few other girls and then crappy guoxiang. there was some adjustment initially cos one group had to dissolve. then came all the weird "name calling" by funny emails. i still remember how our project discussion would go off track and guoxiang will always bring us back. in our conversation, there will surely be ob concepts and terms used.
a very "spoil market" module cos every group was trying to "up" their standard every presentation. it was this module that polished our research skills. we already started to research extensively using the database and learning how to cite professionally. All these were not taught by a prof but a phd student. i mean she is amazing minus the fact that she had a weird habit of turling the ends of her hair. there was a lot of critical thinking and even our Q&A, we had to "argue" using what we have researched from journals to support as in her own words she dont want any "coffeeshop talk".
i still remember she was very proud of our class cos we were very driven and produced really good work which she sadly told us it was unfair to "bell-curve" us cos the three groups were generally better than some of the other classes. i was glad that we all met her expectations and still kept in contact with her.
AB112 - Marketing
Same classmates so you can expect the "spoil market" effect to spill over. the tutor was kinda weird as she wanted quality research and that translated to producing 100+ slides. The first group that got A+ presented banyan trees... but i enjoyed all of the presentations. trying to sell our products and services and also on case studies.
AB103 - Statistical and Quantitative methods
tough course cos i not very good in stats. not much group work and there were not interesting either. lucky got math genius in the group, so the group assignments were not that painful.
AB106 - Principles of Economics
Didnt take it in JC and it was quite a challenge to cramp 2 years plus worth of JC stuff into 3 months. plus the prof was intimidating... after you are asked to present your solutions, she will ask questions to test your knowledge and understanding of the concept. must do tutorial faithfully, cannot copy from others.
quite a long entry... shall break up different semesters into different entries for easier reading.
ok shall blog about happy moments. i guess there is still a collectivist part of me where guilt is killing me! arghz.
decided to write this jiayi-inspired entry summing up my 3 years in NBS.
actually my uni life started with joining the sports club which was the right choice for an explosive start to school. everyone was so "on" and crazy. our group was not the strongest physically but we have smart people in our team so we won quite a lot of challenges. one of the more memorable ones was coming in 4th out of 16 teams in the 2-day amazing race. i could still remember some of the stations that we had:
1. kbox at cck lot one where the clue was an indian word that translated to cck.
2. tiong bahru market to finish one basin of rice! we apparently lost to a group of big eaters
3. kallang to do dragonboat and the clue was sign language. difficult!
4. bedok interchange food center... had to link words to buy different types of food
5. pit stop: pasir ris park and we slept over in tents.
the next morning:
1. east coast park to try the 360ski
2. west coast recreation centre to play bowling and forfeit to drink some weird stuff based on the no. of pins missed
3. qian hu fishing farm. drew lots to see how many different colour small fishes we had to catch. it was so difficult. needed a lot of patience.
the next most fun activity was the night trail at the old changi general hospital. i must applaud the acting skills of the seniors and the prop set up. all the calefare acted as wondering ghosts really gave us the chills and screams. still remembered one of the guys freaked out and ran out of the room. that was how scary.
the camp was also a platform for me to join the organising committee of surf and sweat which was a major national event that ntu sports club organises. learnt a lot from there and i had the honour of doing the explanation of the whole rundown of the event to all the participants despite having to do it for like at least 50 times.
Year 1 Sem 1
AB105 - Organizational Behavior & Design
it was quite amazing how the group was formed. random. started off with me and my marketing grp mate jiayi, then came a few other girls and then crappy guoxiang. there was some adjustment initially cos one group had to dissolve. then came all the weird "name calling" by funny emails. i still remember how our project discussion would go off track and guoxiang will always bring us back. in our conversation, there will surely be ob concepts and terms used.
a very "spoil market" module cos every group was trying to "up" their standard every presentation. it was this module that polished our research skills. we already started to research extensively using the database and learning how to cite professionally. All these were not taught by a prof but a phd student. i mean she is amazing minus the fact that she had a weird habit of turling the ends of her hair. there was a lot of critical thinking and even our Q&A, we had to "argue" using what we have researched from journals to support as in her own words she dont want any "coffeeshop talk".
i still remember she was very proud of our class cos we were very driven and produced really good work which she sadly told us it was unfair to "bell-curve" us cos the three groups were generally better than some of the other classes. i was glad that we all met her expectations and still kept in contact with her.
AB112 - Marketing
Same classmates so you can expect the "spoil market" effect to spill over. the tutor was kinda weird as she wanted quality research and that translated to producing 100+ slides. The first group that got A+ presented banyan trees... but i enjoyed all of the presentations. trying to sell our products and services and also on case studies.
AB103 - Statistical and Quantitative methods
tough course cos i not very good in stats. not much group work and there were not interesting either. lucky got math genius in the group, so the group assignments were not that painful.
AB106 - Principles of Economics
Didnt take it in JC and it was quite a challenge to cramp 2 years plus worth of JC stuff into 3 months. plus the prof was intimidating... after you are asked to present your solutions, she will ask questions to test your knowledge and understanding of the concept. must do tutorial faithfully, cannot copy from others.
quite a long entry... shall break up different semesters into different entries for easier reading.
..:: 636. The One With Misunderstanding ::..
I received an email...
"Wah Liew ey... John, i salute you. You very the pangseh KING leh. I think it's the 3rd time ?? Seriously. I only know that you are not coming, until I meet the rest lor (seems like only xx and xx knows abt it)!!! Some of us actually rush dwn from school just to meet Mdm Ho. You are always just too late minute guy. Seriously.
It's good that you are enthusiastic at project work because you want to score well for the module... but your enthusiasm is a bit temperamental. As your projmate, it's quite hard to tell when you are in or out. I understand previously you have HR Forum and FYP to deal with. But like the rest of us, we have our own stuff too. Seriously, I kinda felt disappointed. It’s not nice to make last minute "surprises" when it comes to working as a team. I hope you can understand that.
Anw, update you. We ALMOST din get to meet Mdm Ho because there's some miscommunication btwn both of you. She though that the meeting is cancelled since you have oreadi sent her the softcopy. Eventually, she came down just for "yi shi yi shi" because all of us were oreadi at AMK Hub. Probably what you shld consider in the future is to Cc all of us the emails btwn you and Mdm Ho. We almost bust into tears when we heard tt she's unaware of the meeting just now. "
-------------------------------------------------------------
my first reaction was "woo. that is quite a direct feedback"
the enthusiasm temperamental was a bit hard to swallow though...
miscommunication. didnt mean to drop the last min bomb. had to get urgent endorsement and approval that had to take priority over the meeting. didnt want to change the meeting just because of me and everyone wanted it to be over and done with. i got the notice late and i msged 2 of the key members whom i left their contacts with "mdm ho". bad judgment i can say but i guess i was expected to msg 5 other members?
the no turn-up of mdm ho was a stunner for me. cos i emailed her:
------------------------------------------------
From: #CHEN XING TIAN JOHN#
To: Mdm Ho
Sent: Monday, April 06, 2009 1:00 PM
Subject: Report
Hi Mdm Ho,
I have attached our report. Sorry that I am unable to make it tml as I already had an appointment. However, my team mates will be there.
9xxxxxxx - xx
9xxxxxxx - xx
Thanks for agreeing to meet us.
Have a nice day.
Regards,
John
-----------------------------------------
i even sent her a sms to remind her. mmm... guess when you are the one coordinating and not there, it can be a prob. and yea. should have cc-ed them. my bad.
as for the 3rd time thing... i didnt realise it was the 3rd time? cos i remember i attended all the meetings. anyway have sent an email to check what were the other 2 times. mmm...
well, another learning point for me. wake up, john!
I received an email...
"Wah Liew ey... John, i salute you. You very the pangseh KING leh. I think it's the 3rd time ?? Seriously. I only know that you are not coming, until I meet the rest lor (seems like only xx and xx knows abt it)!!! Some of us actually rush dwn from school just to meet Mdm Ho. You are always just too late minute guy. Seriously.
It's good that you are enthusiastic at project work because you want to score well for the module... but your enthusiasm is a bit temperamental. As your projmate, it's quite hard to tell when you are in or out. I understand previously you have HR Forum and FYP to deal with. But like the rest of us, we have our own stuff too. Seriously, I kinda felt disappointed. It’s not nice to make last minute "surprises" when it comes to working as a team. I hope you can understand that.
Anw, update you. We ALMOST din get to meet Mdm Ho because there's some miscommunication btwn both of you. She though that the meeting is cancelled since you have oreadi sent her the softcopy. Eventually, she came down just for "yi shi yi shi" because all of us were oreadi at AMK Hub. Probably what you shld consider in the future is to Cc all of us the emails btwn you and Mdm Ho. We almost bust into tears when we heard tt she's unaware of the meeting just now. "
-------------------------------------------------------------
my first reaction was "woo. that is quite a direct feedback"
the enthusiasm temperamental was a bit hard to swallow though...
miscommunication. didnt mean to drop the last min bomb. had to get urgent endorsement and approval that had to take priority over the meeting. didnt want to change the meeting just because of me and everyone wanted it to be over and done with. i got the notice late and i msged 2 of the key members whom i left their contacts with "mdm ho". bad judgment i can say but i guess i was expected to msg 5 other members?
the no turn-up of mdm ho was a stunner for me. cos i emailed her:
------------------------------------------------
From: #CHEN XING TIAN JOHN#
To: Mdm Ho
Sent: Monday, April 06, 2009 1:00 PM
Subject: Report
Hi Mdm Ho,
I have attached our report. Sorry that I am unable to make it tml as I already had an appointment. However, my team mates will be there.
9xxxxxxx - xx
9xxxxxxx - xx
Thanks for agreeing to meet us.
Have a nice day.
Regards,
John
-----------------------------------------
i even sent her a sms to remind her. mmm... guess when you are the one coordinating and not there, it can be a prob. and yea. should have cc-ed them. my bad.
as for the 3rd time thing... i didnt realise it was the 3rd time? cos i remember i attended all the meetings. anyway have sent an email to check what were the other 2 times. mmm...
well, another learning point for me. wake up, john!
Monday, April 06, 2009
..:: 635. The One With New Post ::..
recently, i saw an article on leadership written by one of the prof teaching me and also a representative from saf. then it struck me that i could actually request to post to the centre for leadership development (CLD for short) in saf. firstly, i get to work on the multi-year leadership project that saf has and at the same time, work with the professors i know =) Secondly, leadership is quite a niche area to focus on and i think the stuff i get exposed to will be useful for my future and also for red cross.
but my career manager had something else for me..
"we are clearing you to assume the appointment of SO (staff officer) wospec development..."
ok, wth is wospec? it refers to the warrant officers and specialists.
challenging was the first word that came up in my mind. though there have been efforts done to increase the attractiveness of the wospec, like the recent introduction of the new specialist cadet rank to raise the profile and status of a specialist, the process is not easy...
having done a survey with the wospec to get some ground sensing, there are a few changes they would like to see so being the "voice" for them, i have to juggle their expectations and the organization needs which i hope i will be able to achieve the balance.
anyway i am excited to be back in mindef, can see all my ex-bosses but that means i have to pay for my meals :(
cant wait to start work. sounds exciting.
sidepoint. tiger airways should get their customer helpline together. i tried calling once and was put on hold so for long. subsequently i tried to call back at different times, there was no dial tone. did the staff do something to the line?
recently, i saw an article on leadership written by one of the prof teaching me and also a representative from saf. then it struck me that i could actually request to post to the centre for leadership development (CLD for short) in saf. firstly, i get to work on the multi-year leadership project that saf has and at the same time, work with the professors i know =) Secondly, leadership is quite a niche area to focus on and i think the stuff i get exposed to will be useful for my future and also for red cross.
but my career manager had something else for me..
"we are clearing you to assume the appointment of SO (staff officer) wospec development..."
ok, wth is wospec? it refers to the warrant officers and specialists.
challenging was the first word that came up in my mind. though there have been efforts done to increase the attractiveness of the wospec, like the recent introduction of the new specialist cadet rank to raise the profile and status of a specialist, the process is not easy...
having done a survey with the wospec to get some ground sensing, there are a few changes they would like to see so being the "voice" for them, i have to juggle their expectations and the organization needs which i hope i will be able to achieve the balance.
anyway i am excited to be back in mindef, can see all my ex-bosses but that means i have to pay for my meals :(
cant wait to start work. sounds exciting.
sidepoint. tiger airways should get their customer helpline together. i tried calling once and was put on hold so for long. subsequently i tried to call back at different times, there was no dial tone. did the staff do something to the line?
Saturday, April 04, 2009
..:: 634. The One With David Archuleta ::..
American Idol 7 Runner-up David Archuleta coming to Singapore! gosh. now i sound like a crazy teenager. he will be at iluma, opposite bugis junction at 7 Apr, 7pm!
anyone wanna go? lol.
been spinning lady gaga's songs. lovin' it. a mix of gwen, madonna. very club-able songs... which yash 100% wont like. haha. shall hum those songs when i see her.
just dance.
poker face.
American Idol 7 Runner-up David Archuleta coming to Singapore! gosh. now i sound like a crazy teenager. he will be at iluma, opposite bugis junction at 7 Apr, 7pm!
anyone wanna go? lol.
been spinning lady gaga's songs. lovin' it. a mix of gwen, madonna. very club-able songs... which yash 100% wont like. haha. shall hum those songs when i see her.
just dance.
poker face.
..:: 633. The One With Spree ::..
no. i am not in a shopping spree... on the contrary, i am actually on a download spree. not music or movies but
journal articles!
so expensive to sign up for a database so i thought why not download all the relevant articles before i graduate lol. especially those classic founders of theories...
been searching for relevant topics that could be useful in my career and self-development... topics like:
leadership
teamwork
self-efficacy
culture and self-construals
job performance and job satisfaction
organization citizenship behavior (tough to do in military lol)
counterproductive work behavior (easy to find in military)
selection & assessment
stress and coping
and a few more... cant believe i actually made folders for them. haha.
and i cant believe this is making me high! woohoo~
no. i am not in a shopping spree... on the contrary, i am actually on a download spree. not music or movies but
journal articles!
so expensive to sign up for a database so i thought why not download all the relevant articles before i graduate lol. especially those classic founders of theories...
been searching for relevant topics that could be useful in my career and self-development... topics like:
leadership
teamwork
self-efficacy
culture and self-construals
job performance and job satisfaction
organization citizenship behavior (tough to do in military lol)
counterproductive work behavior (easy to find in military)
selection & assessment
stress and coping
and a few more... cant believe i actually made folders for them. haha.
and i cant believe this is making me high! woohoo~
..:: 632. The One With Final Presentations in NTU ::..
i'm officially done with my last presentation in NTU. how come i dont seem to be excited? i dont know why. i think there is still part of me that loves presentations.
but through today, i can really see how i have benefited from the training NBS has given me. today's finale presentations for hr metrics and cultural intelligence i must say were the most unprepared ones i ever made. but i was glad i could pull it through =) energy people!
at 3am i was still struggling to churn out content slides to send to yash. there's so much info out there with the helpful tool of scopus and google scholar. i found myself reading more and more. got intrigued by interesting studies.
when i was reading the same line twice, i knew my mind cant take in anymore curiosity. still must perform for my metrics presentation which i have not prepared at all. took a 2 hr nap and woke up at 6am. luckily one of my team mates drove so i had a free ride to school and found an alternative route to avoid the traffic jam by using the old lim chu kang road.
got 15 mins to prepare for my part and off we go. saw one team inside the seminar room being "grilled" by the profs. Their Q&A was kinda long...
was glad that our presentation went really well. the profs just raised some clarification and requested us to add in some linkages (considering they gave us only 3000 words limit???)
i was pretty tired then had to rush an abstract and touch up my part before i sprinted to another seminar room for my next presentation. cultural intelligence (CQ) was even more unprepared. cos i havent seen the final slides and not even sure what i was going to present.
but mighty groupmates, everything fell in place. i was shocked that though we went given 40 mins, when our 3nd speaker spoke, the prof told us we only have 10 mins left. so the 4 of us shared the remaining time and rattled fast enough to be comprehended.
faints. kinda sad when u researched so much then u cant get to share as much? :( but i guess the prof loved our presentation cos i must say ours had a super comprehensive coverage for expat development and going beyond the case. hope we get a really good grade...
flashback my pictures for the last presentations for my modules this last semester...
24 Mar, Tue. BH227 - Selection & Assessment with Prof Templar. er huh er huh... with year twos and siok wei & wen yee the old birds
31 Mar, Tue. BH225 - HR Research with Prof Violet Ho with the year twos
3 Apr, Fri. BH326 - HR Metrics with Prof Cheryl Tay and Prof Fang Yong Qing. 2 extreme profs in terms of style, content and behavior lol
3 Apr, Fri. BH331 - Cultural Intelligence at Work with Prof Ng Kok Yee and Thomas
i'm officially done with my last presentation in NTU. how come i dont seem to be excited? i dont know why. i think there is still part of me that loves presentations.
but through today, i can really see how i have benefited from the training NBS has given me. today's finale presentations for hr metrics and cultural intelligence i must say were the most unprepared ones i ever made. but i was glad i could pull it through =) energy people!
at 3am i was still struggling to churn out content slides to send to yash. there's so much info out there with the helpful tool of scopus and google scholar. i found myself reading more and more. got intrigued by interesting studies.
when i was reading the same line twice, i knew my mind cant take in anymore curiosity. still must perform for my metrics presentation which i have not prepared at all. took a 2 hr nap and woke up at 6am. luckily one of my team mates drove so i had a free ride to school and found an alternative route to avoid the traffic jam by using the old lim chu kang road.
got 15 mins to prepare for my part and off we go. saw one team inside the seminar room being "grilled" by the profs. Their Q&A was kinda long...
was glad that our presentation went really well. the profs just raised some clarification and requested us to add in some linkages (considering they gave us only 3000 words limit???)
i was pretty tired then had to rush an abstract and touch up my part before i sprinted to another seminar room for my next presentation. cultural intelligence (CQ) was even more unprepared. cos i havent seen the final slides and not even sure what i was going to present.
but mighty groupmates, everything fell in place. i was shocked that though we went given 40 mins, when our 3nd speaker spoke, the prof told us we only have 10 mins left. so the 4 of us shared the remaining time and rattled fast enough to be comprehended.
faints. kinda sad when u researched so much then u cant get to share as much? :( but i guess the prof loved our presentation cos i must say ours had a super comprehensive coverage for expat development and going beyond the case. hope we get a really good grade...
flashback my pictures for the last presentations for my modules this last semester...
24 Mar, Tue. BH227 - Selection & Assessment with Prof Templar. er huh er huh... with year twos and siok wei & wen yee the old birds
31 Mar, Tue. BH225 - HR Research with Prof Violet Ho with the year twos
3 Apr, Fri. BH326 - HR Metrics with Prof Cheryl Tay and Prof Fang Yong Qing. 2 extreme profs in terms of style, content and behavior lol
3 Apr, Fri. BH331 - Cultural Intelligence at Work with Prof Ng Kok Yee and Thomas
Wednesday, April 01, 2009
..:: 631. The One With 2 Down 2 More To Go ::..
finally 227 and 225 are done. though both presentations seemed like going into warpath. lots of questions shooting without the prof even asking questions. dunno if the yr 2s found me very aggressive, somehow i have questions (and quite a lot) on their presentations. but i tried my best to ask in a non-intrusive way, also tried the complimenting first then shoot technique.
for 225, every group controlled for all variables except our group. every other group was shooting at us why dun we control, no harm etc. tried to explain but i think the prof had a final say and all of us took her words. having to control all variable will decrease the statistical power needed to test for significant relationships. so i gleefully crossed my finger, hope our report get A or A+ (even better). we thought we were the only group with the descriptive stats and inter-correlation table but damn there is another group who had it.
been quite a struggle editing the report i must say. contents were contributed but somehow lacked the persuasiveness... at first it didnt look like we answered the discussion portion well cos the lit review found didnt really address the question. :( double work, haiz.
anyway its over! now left with 2 more on friday. see everyone slogging for hr metrics. i hope i perform well for both presentations. cant let the groups down...
oh yeah! my friend's friend managed to find my thumbdrive! so happy... someone should invent a beeping system to remind user to take their thumbdrive!
finally 227 and 225 are done. though both presentations seemed like going into warpath. lots of questions shooting without the prof even asking questions. dunno if the yr 2s found me very aggressive, somehow i have questions (and quite a lot) on their presentations. but i tried my best to ask in a non-intrusive way, also tried the complimenting first then shoot technique.
for 225, every group controlled for all variables except our group. every other group was shooting at us why dun we control, no harm etc. tried to explain but i think the prof had a final say and all of us took her words. having to control all variable will decrease the statistical power needed to test for significant relationships. so i gleefully crossed my finger, hope our report get A or A+ (even better). we thought we were the only group with the descriptive stats and inter-correlation table but damn there is another group who had it.
been quite a struggle editing the report i must say. contents were contributed but somehow lacked the persuasiveness... at first it didnt look like we answered the discussion portion well cos the lit review found didnt really address the question. :( double work, haiz.
anyway its over! now left with 2 more on friday. see everyone slogging for hr metrics. i hope i perform well for both presentations. cant let the groups down...
oh yeah! my friend's friend managed to find my thumbdrive! so happy... someone should invent a beeping system to remind user to take their thumbdrive!
Sunday, March 29, 2009
..:: 630. The One With Crazy Schedule ::..
went for a norwegian party on fri night. so glad i went for it, made a lot of new friends including a few germans. it was really nice to just chill out and talk about stuff other than school and projects. went with my going-to-india friends. my nose decided to go crazy with me, cant say that the house is dusty but i think i didnt sleep well so it's like my body mechanism.
anyway, chipped in for my god-ma's birthday present. wow. 500+ watch from tissot and 200 bucks of m.a.c stuff.
i am having a crazy week.
1. project report and presentation due on tue.
2. project report and presentation due on fri.
3. presentation due on fri. yes. 3 things due on the same friday. and it is all happening from 830am to 430pm.
hope i survive to go geylang for durian spread and frog leg porridge.
:(
i still missed my thumbdrive. gosh when i am tired, dunno what grammar i am using. -_-
went for a norwegian party on fri night. so glad i went for it, made a lot of new friends including a few germans. it was really nice to just chill out and talk about stuff other than school and projects. went with my going-to-india friends. my nose decided to go crazy with me, cant say that the house is dusty but i think i didnt sleep well so it's like my body mechanism.
anyway, chipped in for my god-ma's birthday present. wow. 500+ watch from tissot and 200 bucks of m.a.c stuff.
i am having a crazy week.
1. project report and presentation due on tue.
2. project report and presentation due on fri.
3. presentation due on fri. yes. 3 things due on the same friday. and it is all happening from 830am to 430pm.
hope i survive to go geylang for durian spread and frog leg porridge.
:(
i still missed my thumbdrive. gosh when i am tired, dunno what grammar i am using. -_-
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Monday, March 23, 2009
..:: 628. The One With Projects ::..
so glad this sem the deadlines for projects are kinda staggered. tml i will be clearing 227, report sent today and tml presentation.
after class, work on 326 cos there is a meeting on wed.
after wed, work on 225 cos there is a meeting on thur.
after thur, study for 326 test on fri.
after fri, work on 331 cos there is work due on sat.
after sat, work on 225 cos the project is due on tue.
after tue, work on both 331 and 326 cos both are due on fri.
*faints*
so glad this sem the deadlines for projects are kinda staggered. tml i will be clearing 227, report sent today and tml presentation.
after class, work on 326 cos there is a meeting on wed.
after wed, work on 225 cos there is a meeting on thur.
after thur, study for 326 test on fri.
after fri, work on 331 cos there is work due on sat.
after sat, work on 225 cos the project is due on tue.
after tue, work on both 331 and 326 cos both are due on fri.
*faints*
Sunday, March 22, 2009
..:: 627. The One With HRYF ::..
warning: lots of lashing out and if you are the unfortunate party mentioned, no offense. i know different people may have different ways of doing things but i just felt like penning down my feelings and how i would do it. maybe i have stepped on your toes or i sucked at some area of my job, you can skip the part about you if you are mentioned. no names will be mentioned and it is not hard to guess anyway.
working through the night was pleasant, though we were rushing last-min stuff like preparing name tags for the participants and facilitators, i enjoyed doing it with my fellow year 3s. however, i was doing up slides late last night which was not really my responsibility. sent questions out earlier but they were not included in the slides. when i requested for a copy of the slides so i could make changes to the questions, i had to sms 3 different people cos each one told me the other has it. greatness. blood pressure (BP) level 1.
slept at 5am and had to wake up at 6 cos we were meeting at 7. morning was not slow-moving which was unexpected. everyone did their part and participants started to stream in.
the problem came only during the arrival of guest-of-honour. he was there at the breakfast reception and we had to stall for time because one of the guest speakers was late. ridiculous right? how could you make the GOH wait for a guest? next thing was the person who will be sitting beside the GOH should be with the GOH and not doing some other things, right? BP Level 2.
In the end, the GOH had to go in and the seat beside him was empty -_-
everything was well until there was not enough plates and utensils for F&B but luckily someone noticed and we went to quad to buy more. there was quick thinking done to replace the rice that had been finished with leftover noodles from the breakfast reception. i was very happy with the initiatives. some facilitators were also interacting with their own groups which were commendable.
the second half was at LKC LT. luckily i pushed for it, it was initially changed without my consent, especially when i already told the judges that it will be LKC and also there will not be enough space for the games if it was not held in LKC. BP level 3.
when i was at lkc, i realised that there will be facilitators who will be joining us at LKC and hence i called for help to get the extra tee shirts from the previous LT. i received a curt reply "why dont u send some people over?". hello? my side only 4 people and there are tons of people at your side. when i ask whether you can help take the shirts over, i dont literally mean you. you can actually ask for help from others who are coming over from your side. BP level just raised to 4.
sorry for the sudden flare cos i was checking my mail and realised my 2 paragraphs i wrote for my project was deleted cos someone thought i was repeating myself. -_-. giving validity and reliability for selection tools is "too technical" for the client? i mean if you dont give the figures, you "bullshit" your way through for your recommendations? i mean come on, you know that the final product is assessed by the prof, dont you want to include things to show that you have learnt from the course? how can you see it as something extra? i just dont understand.
ok back to the forum, arghz.
at 345, one of my judges had not shown up. i was worried but i doubted he will back out. made a mistake, forgot to record his hp though i left my number with him. luckily he texted me at 355 that he made a wrong exit. requested the emcees to let the participants have a break while waiting for the judges. luckily he arrived at 405 and everything could continue.
i was very happy that 2 of the judges i invited gave very good comments and questions. grateful that they agree to spend their precious weekend to judge the competition. oh i should drop them an email.
during the break, i suggested that since there are spare questions left and we had lots of pens left over, why dont we ask the audience questions and give away the pens?
no, they look tired. anyway we are playing the video (showing slideshows of pictures taken)
fine. upset but i respect their decision. i could go up the stage to give but figured that it would be inappropriate to do that.
judges feedback and prize presentation. greatness. my bp level shot even higher. i told the emcees that the judges will give feedback and then someone will give tokens to them and then the prize presentation.
out of nowhere, someone suddenly came to announce the results. maybe its from my own experience in organising events in red cross, mostly involving prize presentations, that normally once you announce the results, no one will care (as much) about what you say later. hence, the usual practice is feedback, tokens, certificates of participation and then prize presentation.
so we had 3 judges standing behind while results were announced. the whole group who won came up and received the prize. then came the horrifying certificates of participation. announced team name but did not request whole team to come up and so we have 3 judges shaking one person's hand for the next 7 rounds.
since when do you see 3 award presenters except in the oscars and grammys. usually you rotate each person to give out different awards or stuff.
i saw the emcees standing there looking lost cos they have no "job" on stage.
once the event was over, everyone was just feeling happy and if i remember vividly, i wanted a shot of all the participants with the organisers in the earlier part of the programme but was TOLD it was inappropriate. i understand the difficulty in coordinating during the lunch break but after the event?
even though announcement was made, everyone started to stroll to the stage. i had to use the mike to get things going. had to wait for all to go up the stage before i invited the judges.
i felt bad while giving the debrief. lashing out my negative thoughts. i was disappointed, i could hide it by praising everyone but i know no one will say the bad things and in the end no improvements. i know i could sugar coat the negative so that they dont turn out harsh but i was tired and didnt want to prolong anyone's stay. our committee really had different views about certain issues and we were all insistent that our own way is better. we didnt want to step on each other's toes which have resulted a degree of confusion due to the frequent change of plans. there was a lack of a decision maker and hence boundaries were not drawn and authorities were not assigned. i didnt want to suddenly take charge cos i must admit i was not actively involved in the planning in the start. so i mostly gave advice.
but overall, i think everyone did their part and together we managed to pull off the event. i understand that things cannot always turn out perfect, just that when things go wrong and i know it should not have based on my experience. i get angry and frustrated with myself for not stepping in.
ok. done with ranting. couldnt talk about it cos had friends who had bigger issues to handle and i rather be their listening ears than to pour my feelings out to them.
warning: lots of lashing out and if you are the unfortunate party mentioned, no offense. i know different people may have different ways of doing things but i just felt like penning down my feelings and how i would do it. maybe i have stepped on your toes or i sucked at some area of my job, you can skip the part about you if you are mentioned. no names will be mentioned and it is not hard to guess anyway.
working through the night was pleasant, though we were rushing last-min stuff like preparing name tags for the participants and facilitators, i enjoyed doing it with my fellow year 3s. however, i was doing up slides late last night which was not really my responsibility. sent questions out earlier but they were not included in the slides. when i requested for a copy of the slides so i could make changes to the questions, i had to sms 3 different people cos each one told me the other has it. greatness. blood pressure (BP) level 1.
slept at 5am and had to wake up at 6 cos we were meeting at 7. morning was not slow-moving which was unexpected. everyone did their part and participants started to stream in.
the problem came only during the arrival of guest-of-honour. he was there at the breakfast reception and we had to stall for time because one of the guest speakers was late. ridiculous right? how could you make the GOH wait for a guest? next thing was the person who will be sitting beside the GOH should be with the GOH and not doing some other things, right? BP Level 2.
In the end, the GOH had to go in and the seat beside him was empty -_-
everything was well until there was not enough plates and utensils for F&B but luckily someone noticed and we went to quad to buy more. there was quick thinking done to replace the rice that had been finished with leftover noodles from the breakfast reception. i was very happy with the initiatives. some facilitators were also interacting with their own groups which were commendable.
the second half was at LKC LT. luckily i pushed for it, it was initially changed without my consent, especially when i already told the judges that it will be LKC and also there will not be enough space for the games if it was not held in LKC. BP level 3.
when i was at lkc, i realised that there will be facilitators who will be joining us at LKC and hence i called for help to get the extra tee shirts from the previous LT. i received a curt reply "why dont u send some people over?". hello? my side only 4 people and there are tons of people at your side. when i ask whether you can help take the shirts over, i dont literally mean you. you can actually ask for help from others who are coming over from your side. BP level just raised to 4.
sorry for the sudden flare cos i was checking my mail and realised my 2 paragraphs i wrote for my project was deleted cos someone thought i was repeating myself. -_-. giving validity and reliability for selection tools is "too technical" for the client? i mean if you dont give the figures, you "bullshit" your way through for your recommendations? i mean come on, you know that the final product is assessed by the prof, dont you want to include things to show that you have learnt from the course? how can you see it as something extra? i just dont understand.
ok back to the forum, arghz.
at 345, one of my judges had not shown up. i was worried but i doubted he will back out. made a mistake, forgot to record his hp though i left my number with him. luckily he texted me at 355 that he made a wrong exit. requested the emcees to let the participants have a break while waiting for the judges. luckily he arrived at 405 and everything could continue.
i was very happy that 2 of the judges i invited gave very good comments and questions. grateful that they agree to spend their precious weekend to judge the competition. oh i should drop them an email.
during the break, i suggested that since there are spare questions left and we had lots of pens left over, why dont we ask the audience questions and give away the pens?
no, they look tired. anyway we are playing the video (showing slideshows of pictures taken)
fine. upset but i respect their decision. i could go up the stage to give but figured that it would be inappropriate to do that.
judges feedback and prize presentation. greatness. my bp level shot even higher. i told the emcees that the judges will give feedback and then someone will give tokens to them and then the prize presentation.
out of nowhere, someone suddenly came to announce the results. maybe its from my own experience in organising events in red cross, mostly involving prize presentations, that normally once you announce the results, no one will care (as much) about what you say later. hence, the usual practice is feedback, tokens, certificates of participation and then prize presentation.
so we had 3 judges standing behind while results were announced. the whole group who won came up and received the prize. then came the horrifying certificates of participation. announced team name but did not request whole team to come up and so we have 3 judges shaking one person's hand for the next 7 rounds.
since when do you see 3 award presenters except in the oscars and grammys. usually you rotate each person to give out different awards or stuff.
i saw the emcees standing there looking lost cos they have no "job" on stage.
once the event was over, everyone was just feeling happy and if i remember vividly, i wanted a shot of all the participants with the organisers in the earlier part of the programme but was TOLD it was inappropriate. i understand the difficulty in coordinating during the lunch break but after the event?
even though announcement was made, everyone started to stroll to the stage. i had to use the mike to get things going. had to wait for all to go up the stage before i invited the judges.
i felt bad while giving the debrief. lashing out my negative thoughts. i was disappointed, i could hide it by praising everyone but i know no one will say the bad things and in the end no improvements. i know i could sugar coat the negative so that they dont turn out harsh but i was tired and didnt want to prolong anyone's stay. our committee really had different views about certain issues and we were all insistent that our own way is better. we didnt want to step on each other's toes which have resulted a degree of confusion due to the frequent change of plans. there was a lack of a decision maker and hence boundaries were not drawn and authorities were not assigned. i didnt want to suddenly take charge cos i must admit i was not actively involved in the planning in the start. so i mostly gave advice.
but overall, i think everyone did their part and together we managed to pull off the event. i understand that things cannot always turn out perfect, just that when things go wrong and i know it should not have based on my experience. i get angry and frustrated with myself for not stepping in.
ok. done with ranting. couldnt talk about it cos had friends who had bigger issues to handle and i rather be their listening ears than to pour my feelings out to them.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
..:: 626. The One With Sub-Standard ::..
dont you just hate it when people give you sub-standard work when you have such high expectations of them?
this is my Type A personality speaking and this is what is going to give me cardiovascular disease in the future.
arghz. where is the drive and motivation to do better? just satisfied to deliver the minimum or what was told?
dont you just hate it when people give you sub-standard work when you have such high expectations of them?
this is my Type A personality speaking and this is what is going to give me cardiovascular disease in the future.
arghz. where is the drive and motivation to do better? just satisfied to deliver the minimum or what was told?
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
..:: 625. The One With Project Meeting ::..
somehow somehow after fyp, my brain sort of cleared up and even though i am faced with 3 different project meetings, i feel that nothing can trump fyp in terms of difficulty. lol.
had 227 meeting (selection & assessment), all came to the meeting with their parts done, very efficient, meeting always lasted about an hour and we distribute tasks and get them done in just 2 days.
had 225 meeting (hr research), lasted about 2 hours but we were able to come up with the structure and hypotheses very smoothly. so now it is up to us to fill in the contents which i believe will turn out well as we did quite a good job for our literature review earlier.
had 326 meeting (hr metrics), lasted about 2.5 hours. struggled initially cos we had lots of content and lit review but just dunno how to make the report flow. pleased with my performance in the group, somehow managed to lead in working out the logical flow of the project. hope my group didnt find me too assertive. always wanted to work with my current group members cos in other modules, i feel that they have some kind of dynamics and really glad that i got a chance to work with them and get to know more people except chia yee and yashira. lol.
didnt have fyp meeting, which usually lasted more than 2.5 hours. we didnt talk most of the time but busy doing our stuff. occasionally questions were raised and very easily we find ourselves talking about stuff that is non-fyp related. sometimes i wondered if we deliberately do it so that we can have dinner together. haha.
which is in some way true. all my other projects, we didnt have dinner or any meal. perhaps not much bonding happened. maybe for our next meeting, i shall ask them to eat as a group. i think its through time that we spent talking about other things except the project that allow us to know each other better. just ask me what likes and dislikes, even attachment theory that my fyp mates belong to, i can rattle all day. lol.
ntu lifetime alumni membership at 100 bucks. anyone?
somehow somehow after fyp, my brain sort of cleared up and even though i am faced with 3 different project meetings, i feel that nothing can trump fyp in terms of difficulty. lol.
had 227 meeting (selection & assessment), all came to the meeting with their parts done, very efficient, meeting always lasted about an hour and we distribute tasks and get them done in just 2 days.
had 225 meeting (hr research), lasted about 2 hours but we were able to come up with the structure and hypotheses very smoothly. so now it is up to us to fill in the contents which i believe will turn out well as we did quite a good job for our literature review earlier.
had 326 meeting (hr metrics), lasted about 2.5 hours. struggled initially cos we had lots of content and lit review but just dunno how to make the report flow. pleased with my performance in the group, somehow managed to lead in working out the logical flow of the project. hope my group didnt find me too assertive. always wanted to work with my current group members cos in other modules, i feel that they have some kind of dynamics and really glad that i got a chance to work with them and get to know more people except chia yee and yashira. lol.
didnt have fyp meeting, which usually lasted more than 2.5 hours. we didnt talk most of the time but busy doing our stuff. occasionally questions were raised and very easily we find ourselves talking about stuff that is non-fyp related. sometimes i wondered if we deliberately do it so that we can have dinner together. haha.
which is in some way true. all my other projects, we didnt have dinner or any meal. perhaps not much bonding happened. maybe for our next meeting, i shall ask them to eat as a group. i think its through time that we spent talking about other things except the project that allow us to know each other better. just ask me what likes and dislikes, even attachment theory that my fyp mates belong to, i can rattle all day. lol.
ntu lifetime alumni membership at 100 bucks. anyone?
Saturday, March 14, 2009
..:: 624. The One With NTU Open House ::..
was late today for quiz. i think it was that blood rushing to my heart cos i sprinted to class... forgot to reverse code one of the statement :( there goes my A+ ... haiz
open house was fun. took pictures and talked to a lot of people. but somehow more people interested in tourism though. next please. haha.
i would love to be a tour guide to bring the students ard ntu, think would be fun =) though most of the time i would be talking to myself.
thanks to dolly, she drove us out of school to avoid the crowd. didnt know she has so much "power", she is the one who chooses who to get into nbs. o_O wow. i would love to do that too. haha.
it's kinda weird to find that there were people who were scheduled for shifts but did not turn out. sick? got project? so is it to say that those who went had no project? mmm...
was late today for quiz. i think it was that blood rushing to my heart cos i sprinted to class... forgot to reverse code one of the statement :( there goes my A+ ... haiz
open house was fun. took pictures and talked to a lot of people. but somehow more people interested in tourism though. next please. haha.
i would love to be a tour guide to bring the students ard ntu, think would be fun =) though most of the time i would be talking to myself.
thanks to dolly, she drove us out of school to avoid the crowd. didnt know she has so much "power", she is the one who chooses who to get into nbs. o_O wow. i would love to do that too. haha.
it's kinda weird to find that there were people who were scheduled for shifts but did not turn out. sick? got project? so is it to say that those who went had no project? mmm...
..:: 623. The One With Aftermath ::..
Still not getting enough sleep. had 830 class today and finally submitted the final copy to our prof. phew.
negotiation class was fun! i got more out of what i had expected. i thought my nego partner would not budge easily and might have to settle for in-between.
watched grey's episode 17 and started to tear a bit at the ending... sometimes the shocking news you have, you might not even want to share it with your closest friends... george offered a listening ear but izzie didnt want to tell him, at least not yet. if i were her, i wouldnt have told my best friends either. i wouldnt want them to get "hysterical" or worked up. i think the sudden "care and concern" will overwhelming and it will somehow make me go into self-pity and the whole emo cycle starts.
kept re-watching american idol top 13 performance especially adam lambert's black or white. really good. danny gokey's was a great one but adam's more catchy.
Still not getting enough sleep. had 830 class today and finally submitted the final copy to our prof. phew.
negotiation class was fun! i got more out of what i had expected. i thought my nego partner would not budge easily and might have to settle for in-between.
watched grey's episode 17 and started to tear a bit at the ending... sometimes the shocking news you have, you might not even want to share it with your closest friends... george offered a listening ear but izzie didnt want to tell him, at least not yet. if i were her, i wouldnt have told my best friends either. i wouldnt want them to get "hysterical" or worked up. i think the sudden "care and concern" will overwhelming and it will somehow make me go into self-pity and the whole emo cycle starts.
kept re-watching american idol top 13 performance especially adam lambert's black or white. really good. danny gokey's was a great one but adam's more catchy.
Friday, March 13, 2009
..: 622. The One With Partial Fulfillment ::..
somehow i love to see this line in my FYP...
Applied Research Project submitted to the Nanyang Business School, Nanyang Technological University in partial fulfillment for the degree of Bachelor of Business.
The end is yet to be. as much as i hate doing fyp but i really appreciate having great teammates who...
1. willing to watch america's next top model with me and dun judge me
2. get chased out by the security guard and bitch about it
3. buy food for each other, come to think, yash bought supper, jiayi bought breakfast and i bought lunch
4. enjoy korean guy singing touch my body or widely known as tuts my barreh
5. randomly think of names for our children
6. share movie reviews
7. are unique individuals and always bring something new to the table
3 cheers to the chemistry and many years of friendship.
now i miss doing fyp... lol.
was reading newspaper and shocked to hear two news.
the nus hostel dudes who ran naked. bravo to them. i think it takes more than alcohol to do that. who cares about acts of indecency. haha. reminds me of the band camp, the american pie series, running nude in school.
next, the auto transplantation. something i thought i saw in grey's anatomy really happened in real life. taking out numerous organs and then putting them back again. somemore a young child.
now left with 3 projects in my agenda before my final exams. gotta catch some sleep. spent 26 hours in the reading room is insane! started a facebook group to vote for chia yee (jiayi) for valedictorian for convo 2009 business !!
somehow i love to see this line in my FYP...
Applied Research Project submitted to the Nanyang Business School, Nanyang Technological University in partial fulfillment for the degree of Bachelor of Business.
The end is yet to be. as much as i hate doing fyp but i really appreciate having great teammates who...
1. willing to watch america's next top model with me and dun judge me
2. get chased out by the security guard and bitch about it
3. buy food for each other, come to think, yash bought supper, jiayi bought breakfast and i bought lunch
4. enjoy korean guy singing touch my body or widely known as tuts my barreh
5. randomly think of names for our children
6. share movie reviews
7. are unique individuals and always bring something new to the table
3 cheers to the chemistry and many years of friendship.
now i miss doing fyp... lol.
was reading newspaper and shocked to hear two news.
the nus hostel dudes who ran naked. bravo to them. i think it takes more than alcohol to do that. who cares about acts of indecency. haha. reminds me of the band camp, the american pie series, running nude in school.
next, the auto transplantation. something i thought i saw in grey's anatomy really happened in real life. taking out numerous organs and then putting them back again. somemore a young child.
now left with 3 projects in my agenda before my final exams. gotta catch some sleep. spent 26 hours in the reading room is insane! started a facebook group to vote for chia yee (jiayi) for valedictorian for convo 2009 business !!
Thursday, March 12, 2009
..:: 620. The One With Security Guard ::..
arghz. got chased out from the seminar room by a security guard. must be first day on his job, so enthu. came into the room...
"you all got make booking? misuse the system ar"
o_O how he define misuse of system? in the end, we found that he managed to chase everyone out from all the seminar rooms. wow. his performance appraisal must be really good. compensation not just based on hourly basis but also commission based on number of students chased.
we are using the room to do projects, not sniff drugs... how i wish we could put up some struggle... he actually waited outside for us to clear the room. very rude when he ended "switch off the lights"...
now i rather wish the security guards were dozing off at their desks...
arghz. got chased out from the seminar room by a security guard. must be first day on his job, so enthu. came into the room...
"you all got make booking? misuse the system ar"
o_O how he define misuse of system? in the end, we found that he managed to chase everyone out from all the seminar rooms. wow. his performance appraisal must be really good. compensation not just based on hourly basis but also commission based on number of students chased.
we are using the room to do projects, not sniff drugs... how i wish we could put up some struggle... he actually waited outside for us to clear the room. very rude when he ended "switch off the lights"...
now i rather wish the security guards were dozing off at their desks...
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
..:: 619. The One With Open House ::..
This sat's NTU Open House will be a light-hearted event for me...
i would have submitted my FYP and completed my test (in that very morning).
But i am still looking at 3 project reports to complete. This sem though having 5 modules seems a little easier than the last sem... maybe it is because of the modules i am taking.
Do come down to the open house to find out more about degrees offered in NTU. Sports Science is a new one, i am also curious on what are the modules like... but of course, how you could miss Nanyang Business School, top-24 business school in the world. I will be manning booth for the afternoon shift.
This sat's NTU Open House will be a light-hearted event for me...
i would have submitted my FYP and completed my test (in that very morning).
But i am still looking at 3 project reports to complete. This sem though having 5 modules seems a little easier than the last sem... maybe it is because of the modules i am taking.
Do come down to the open house to find out more about degrees offered in NTU. Sports Science is a new one, i am also curious on what are the modules like... but of course, how you could miss Nanyang Business School, top-24 business school in the world. I will be manning booth for the afternoon shift.
Monday, March 09, 2009
..:: 618. The One With The Bus ::..
was on the smrt bus today. at the expressway, the long bus started to swerve uncontrollably. you can see the first half and the second half of the bus moving in staggering mode. the people at the back of the bus were screaming. gosh, i thought the bus was going to crash at some point. and the bus driver didnt bother to slow down. maybe he couldnt but it was running into 2 lanes. now that is scary.
i thought my experience working with year twos was already quite hilarious and mind boggling at times, but seems like i am not alone! i believe working with fellow clueless yr 3s can be exasperating (not for me at least)
felt happy today cos i finally got the products my sis ordered for me from her company boss... got a natural spray from Issey Miyake, a super big Ralph Lauren duffel bag, products from Shu Uemura, Biotherm Homme, Clinque... i feel my face being nourished and pampered. haha.
i bought books from kino! the reader (which got yash exclaiming 'what?') and revolutionary road.
was on the smrt bus today. at the expressway, the long bus started to swerve uncontrollably. you can see the first half and the second half of the bus moving in staggering mode. the people at the back of the bus were screaming. gosh, i thought the bus was going to crash at some point. and the bus driver didnt bother to slow down. maybe he couldnt but it was running into 2 lanes. now that is scary.
i thought my experience working with year twos was already quite hilarious and mind boggling at times, but seems like i am not alone! i believe working with fellow clueless yr 3s can be exasperating (not for me at least)
felt happy today cos i finally got the products my sis ordered for me from her company boss... got a natural spray from Issey Miyake, a super big Ralph Lauren duffel bag, products from Shu Uemura, Biotherm Homme, Clinque... i feel my face being nourished and pampered. haha.
i bought books from kino! the reader (which got yash exclaiming 'what?') and revolutionary road.
Friday, March 06, 2009
..:: 617. The One With Excitement ::..
gee... today while in class received a sms from my career manager to ask me to call her asap. i got excited cos i was thinking whether she had secured a position for me... and she really did. she intro-ed me the job title and it sounded cool. huge learning curve and she mentioned i will be very suitable for the job, knowing my interests and strengths.
been gathering feedback from my previous bosses,and so far all favourable and supportive. i hope i wont disappoint them, especially since it is back to mindef. ranked with all the other scholars, i am worried but i look forward to the challenges and hopefully i am able to unleash my potential and increase my CEP.
gee... today while in class received a sms from my career manager to ask me to call her asap. i got excited cos i was thinking whether she had secured a position for me... and she really did. she intro-ed me the job title and it sounded cool. huge learning curve and she mentioned i will be very suitable for the job, knowing my interests and strengths.
been gathering feedback from my previous bosses,and so far all favourable and supportive. i hope i wont disappoint them, especially since it is back to mindef. ranked with all the other scholars, i am worried but i look forward to the challenges and hopefully i am able to unleash my potential and increase my CEP.
Thursday, March 05, 2009
..:: 616. The One With Departures ::..
it is oscar/academy award winner of best foreign film. a japanese one. i love the synopsis given and was intrigued to catch it. it was definitely worth it. it is about a guy who lost his job and looked at the advert and found one that had something to do with "departures". He went for the interview and soon found that he was actually going to dress, wash, and put makeup on the deceased before the funeral. not really embalming cos it will involve the three goals of embalming which are preservation, sanitization and presentation (or restoration) of a dead body.[wikipedia]
haha citations! arghz so FYP. (final year project)
It is a ritual i think only in japan where the person will "cleanse" the dead and help them change clothes and do make up. everything is done skilfully and precisely and done in front of the families. the person has to ensure minimal exposure of the skin or body to the families and friends.
It was through the boss, he knew that the ad was wrong, they were looking for someone to deal with the "departed" and not departures which the guy thought it was a job in a tour agency! lol.
it was quite a emotional rollercoaster, cos you laugh at some parts even though it was a serious ceremony. at times u cry when u see the family cries and family problems start to surface.
it is sort of like the HBO series - six feet under which i loved it.
it was a tough job. partly due to the nature of the job. an on-call one and also depend on the nature of death. but the most difficult part is having your family and dear ones know and accept your job. Firstly it is look down upon because you earn money from a dead person and also some cannot take the idea that the very hands touching you have actually been touching the dead.
spoiler alert
the story does not explicitly explain why the job is admirable. after each case and with the conversations from the boss, the guy learned something that kept him in the job despite having to choose to give up his wife who later came to understand why he was so "hooked" to the job.
i also went to buy dvds of little children and vicky christina barcelona. great films. one for kate winslet, the other for penelope cruz and javier bardem (who weirdly look like jeffrey dean morgan, the guy as the dead finance of izzie in grey's)
it is oscar/academy award winner of best foreign film. a japanese one. i love the synopsis given and was intrigued to catch it. it was definitely worth it. it is about a guy who lost his job and looked at the advert and found one that had something to do with "departures". He went for the interview and soon found that he was actually going to dress, wash, and put makeup on the deceased before the funeral. not really embalming cos it will involve the three goals of embalming which are preservation, sanitization and presentation (or restoration) of a dead body.[wikipedia]
haha citations! arghz so FYP. (final year project)
It is a ritual i think only in japan where the person will "cleanse" the dead and help them change clothes and do make up. everything is done skilfully and precisely and done in front of the families. the person has to ensure minimal exposure of the skin or body to the families and friends.
It was through the boss, he knew that the ad was wrong, they were looking for someone to deal with the "departed" and not departures which the guy thought it was a job in a tour agency! lol.
it was quite a emotional rollercoaster, cos you laugh at some parts even though it was a serious ceremony. at times u cry when u see the family cries and family problems start to surface.
it is sort of like the HBO series - six feet under which i loved it.
it was a tough job. partly due to the nature of the job. an on-call one and also depend on the nature of death. but the most difficult part is having your family and dear ones know and accept your job. Firstly it is look down upon because you earn money from a dead person and also some cannot take the idea that the very hands touching you have actually been touching the dead.
spoiler alert
the story does not explicitly explain why the job is admirable. after each case and with the conversations from the boss, the guy learned something that kept him in the job despite having to choose to give up his wife who later came to understand why he was so "hooked" to the job.
i also went to buy dvds of little children and vicky christina barcelona. great films. one for kate winslet, the other for penelope cruz and javier bardem (who weirdly look like jeffrey dean morgan, the guy as the dead finance of izzie in grey's)
..:: 615. The One With The Reader & Milk ::..
kate winslet delivered yet another stellar performance. now i know why she got the best actress... the reader was really spectacular. i was so intrigued by kate's acting. in there, she plays a middle-age woman who has a secret. at first, i thought it would be those secret that she is having an affair with a young boy etc but it was not.
spoiler alert.
when she went on trial, there was the best part she exhibited her acting skills. you can literally tell all the emotions she was going through in her face. a mixture of innocence, helplessness, having to suppress herself to keep her darkest secret. in the end, she had to shoulder the "crime" and got life imprisonment. her response to the judge, "What would you have done?", really blew me away. it really reflected her simple mindedness (that was related to her secret). it was just that she was in the wrong situation that she could not get herself out.
the young boy (Michael)she had relationship with was feeling puzzled. there were girls that had to be sent to death in the gas chambers and kate (henna in the show) had the girls read to her (*hint). Michael was confused whether she wanted the girls to read to her so that the death will be more bearable or whether she had them killed because they knew her secret.
very haunting experience. left me feeling pity for her.
Little note about the setting of the story and the gas chamber thing from wikipedia:
Prisoners were transported from all over German-occupied Europe by rail, arriving at Auschwitz-Birkenau in daily convoys. Arrivals at the complex were separated into two main groups - those marked for immediate extermination, and those to be registered as prisoners. The first group, about three-quarters of the total, went to the gas chambers of Auschwitz-Birkenau within a few hours; they included all children, all women with children, all the elderly, and all those who appeared on brief and superficial inspection by an SS doctor not to be fully fit. SS personnel told the victims that they were to take a shower and undergo delousing. The victims would undress in an outer chamber and walk into the gas chamber, which was disguised as a shower facility, complete with dummy shower heads. After the doors were shut, SS men would dump in the cyanide pellets via (depending on which crematorium) holes in the roof or windows on the side. In the Auschwitz Birkenau camp more than 20,000 people could be gassed and cremated each day
Do you know?
Stephen Daldry's first choice for the lead role was Kate Winslet, who originally turned down the offer due to a scheduling conflict with Revolutionary Road (2008). When Nicole Kidman accepted the role, the producers built in a hiatus in order to allow her to finish filming Baz Luhrmann's Australia (2008). However, by the time Kidman was set to begin her scenes on the film, she withdrew because of her pregnancy, vacating the role. Winslet, who was now available, agreed to replace Kidman. Imagine nicole kidman could have been in the oscars too.
i wondered how it felt to have a mature woman like kate naked with a 17 year old david kross... must be stressful for the guy to work with such an outstanding actress who bares all in the show. kate really aged gracefully.
Milk was great too... love the scenes where james franco had to kiss sean penn, disturbing but what can you expect from 2 hot dudes? the occasional spanking was funny. but franco looks like he lost his shape. anyway, i love the scenes where sean penn has to defend for gay rights, the witty conversations and debates were interesting. like one where the anti-gay minister wanted to sack all the homo teachers saying that since they cannot have children on their own, they want to "recruit" children. then sean asked "so how do you teach homosexuality? So you think homosexuality is like french?" haha. had great laughs.
kate winslet and sean penn, love them. you guys should watch the movies (think they are ending their run soon). wanna catch revolutionary road soon, the modern titanic. haha. where i can also see kate winslet again =)
FYP draft over! finally i can sleep well for at least one day.
watched american idol. round 3 so boring. only scott and lil' i think got chance.
but now hooked on david archuleta and david cook. gosh. two different styles and i love them. been spinning D.A's when you believe and crush (which yash absolutely abhors) and D.C's always be my baby and light on. didnt noe DA has vocal paralysis or some sort. but he still sounds so nice.
gosh now i hope i can play and sing "a thousand miles" like him.
kate winslet delivered yet another stellar performance. now i know why she got the best actress... the reader was really spectacular. i was so intrigued by kate's acting. in there, she plays a middle-age woman who has a secret. at first, i thought it would be those secret that she is having an affair with a young boy etc but it was not.
spoiler alert.
when she went on trial, there was the best part she exhibited her acting skills. you can literally tell all the emotions she was going through in her face. a mixture of innocence, helplessness, having to suppress herself to keep her darkest secret. in the end, she had to shoulder the "crime" and got life imprisonment. her response to the judge, "What would you have done?", really blew me away. it really reflected her simple mindedness (that was related to her secret). it was just that she was in the wrong situation that she could not get herself out.
the young boy (Michael)she had relationship with was feeling puzzled. there were girls that had to be sent to death in the gas chambers and kate (henna in the show) had the girls read to her (*hint). Michael was confused whether she wanted the girls to read to her so that the death will be more bearable or whether she had them killed because they knew her secret.
very haunting experience. left me feeling pity for her.
Little note about the setting of the story and the gas chamber thing from wikipedia:
Prisoners were transported from all over German-occupied Europe by rail, arriving at Auschwitz-Birkenau in daily convoys. Arrivals at the complex were separated into two main groups - those marked for immediate extermination, and those to be registered as prisoners. The first group, about three-quarters of the total, went to the gas chambers of Auschwitz-Birkenau within a few hours; they included all children, all women with children, all the elderly, and all those who appeared on brief and superficial inspection by an SS doctor not to be fully fit. SS personnel told the victims that they were to take a shower and undergo delousing. The victims would undress in an outer chamber and walk into the gas chamber, which was disguised as a shower facility, complete with dummy shower heads. After the doors were shut, SS men would dump in the cyanide pellets via (depending on which crematorium) holes in the roof or windows on the side. In the Auschwitz Birkenau camp more than 20,000 people could be gassed and cremated each day
Do you know?
Stephen Daldry's first choice for the lead role was Kate Winslet, who originally turned down the offer due to a scheduling conflict with Revolutionary Road (2008). When Nicole Kidman accepted the role, the producers built in a hiatus in order to allow her to finish filming Baz Luhrmann's Australia (2008). However, by the time Kidman was set to begin her scenes on the film, she withdrew because of her pregnancy, vacating the role. Winslet, who was now available, agreed to replace Kidman. Imagine nicole kidman could have been in the oscars too.
i wondered how it felt to have a mature woman like kate naked with a 17 year old david kross... must be stressful for the guy to work with such an outstanding actress who bares all in the show. kate really aged gracefully.
Milk was great too... love the scenes where james franco had to kiss sean penn, disturbing but what can you expect from 2 hot dudes? the occasional spanking was funny. but franco looks like he lost his shape. anyway, i love the scenes where sean penn has to defend for gay rights, the witty conversations and debates were interesting. like one where the anti-gay minister wanted to sack all the homo teachers saying that since they cannot have children on their own, they want to "recruit" children. then sean asked "so how do you teach homosexuality? So you think homosexuality is like french?" haha. had great laughs.
kate winslet and sean penn, love them. you guys should watch the movies (think they are ending their run soon). wanna catch revolutionary road soon, the modern titanic. haha. where i can also see kate winslet again =)
FYP draft over! finally i can sleep well for at least one day.
watched american idol. round 3 so boring. only scott and lil' i think got chance.
but now hooked on david archuleta and david cook. gosh. two different styles and i love them. been spinning D.A's when you believe and crush (which yash absolutely abhors) and D.C's always be my baby and light on. didnt noe DA has vocal paralysis or some sort. but he still sounds so nice.
gosh now i hope i can play and sing "a thousand miles" like him.
Saturday, February 28, 2009
..:: 614. The One With Marley & Me ::..
Marley and me was such a nice show... surprisingly not much humour from owen wilson. the firm sequence was jumbled up. can be quite confusing but i guess it is better than playing the whole life story. i think it is an interesting way to film... how they focus on the human elements and "downplay" the part that the dog has already been part of the family and present at every special moment - getting job, moving house, having children. the dog does not love u less when u have children. in fact, the dog loved the children.
why watch?
jennifer aniston! oh towards the end it was so touching... whenever i see her tear, it warms my heart... the children crying over the dog, that was when you can hear girls crying in the cinema. didnt quite expect that. i thought it would be like mr shaggy kind of laugh and forget show but it did leave a warm feeling after the show.
eric dane. the plastic surgeon on grey's anatomy. he was pretty much blabbering nonsense though :( would love if he had more screen time and he looked like he didnt train for quite some time. lol.
back to american idol, i was spot on! managed to rush back in time to catch adam got into the top 12.
oh, something i am irritated about. have you ever gone on public transport (bus, train) and have people playing mp3 through their phones loudly? i was thinking whether the next time i encounter it, i should step up and comment... dunno which approach is the best?
1. Do you mind using a earpiece? (when i am in a good mood and the person is good looking)
2. Your music sucks and we dont want to hear it (when i am pissed and the person is an ah beng or equivalent)
3. Your parents never teach you manners ar? (when i am faced with secondary schools kids)
4. Put on your f***in earpiece! (when i feel like getting into a fight or i am able to make a strategic exit)
lol maybe i am not that daring and vocal after all, i might just keep turning to look at the person with a frown and hope he/she gets the hint.
gosh some of the songs they play... really reflect their "class"...
Marley and me was such a nice show... surprisingly not much humour from owen wilson. the firm sequence was jumbled up. can be quite confusing but i guess it is better than playing the whole life story. i think it is an interesting way to film... how they focus on the human elements and "downplay" the part that the dog has already been part of the family and present at every special moment - getting job, moving house, having children. the dog does not love u less when u have children. in fact, the dog loved the children.
why watch?
jennifer aniston! oh towards the end it was so touching... whenever i see her tear, it warms my heart... the children crying over the dog, that was when you can hear girls crying in the cinema. didnt quite expect that. i thought it would be like mr shaggy kind of laugh and forget show but it did leave a warm feeling after the show.
eric dane. the plastic surgeon on grey's anatomy. he was pretty much blabbering nonsense though :( would love if he had more screen time and he looked like he didnt train for quite some time. lol.
back to american idol, i was spot on! managed to rush back in time to catch adam got into the top 12.
oh, something i am irritated about. have you ever gone on public transport (bus, train) and have people playing mp3 through their phones loudly? i was thinking whether the next time i encounter it, i should step up and comment... dunno which approach is the best?
1. Do you mind using a earpiece? (when i am in a good mood and the person is good looking)
2. Your music sucks and we dont want to hear it (when i am pissed and the person is an ah beng or equivalent)
3. Your parents never teach you manners ar? (when i am faced with secondary schools kids)
4. Put on your f***in earpiece! (when i feel like getting into a fight or i am able to make a strategic exit)
lol maybe i am not that daring and vocal after all, i might just keep turning to look at the person with a frown and hope he/she gets the hint.
gosh some of the songs they play... really reflect their "class"...
Thursday, February 26, 2009
..:: 613. The One With AI ::..
"adapted from my entry in one of my module blog"
I was watching the 9pm news today and they were showing this youtube video that was the most watched for this week. It involved a lady who became hysterical when she missed her flight.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xbVw7entkxg
The whole issue was not about the individual missing the flight but more of stereotyping like how it was "typical" for a chinese to behave like this, etc. As many have mentioned, it was also a case of self-discrimination, "chinese bashing chinese". There are also subtle differences (probably arising from politics and history) in how Chinese view themselves, especially Chinese from China, Hongkong and Taiwan. So, beware of how you generalise Chinese in different countries.
Today's american idol is so entertaining =) wonder why ch 5 decided to insert the local live and loaded into the 11pm slot :( now i have to wait till tml to watch the remaining contestants.
the 16yo Allison Iraheta is amazing... she is a sure-in for top 12. red hair and great voice. her rendition of alone by heart was O_O and look at the way she worked her mike and stage... cant believe she is only 16.
Kris Allen. i hope he gets in. firstly, he is so handsome and cute to look at even from a guy's perspective. plus, he sure gets votes from the chicks cos he is great with those soulful and blue songs. he turned it on and did his version of michael jackson song (Man in the mirror) which simon cowell surprisingly loved. i like it towards the end where he got more comfortable.
Last contestant (which i havent watched the entire show) i hope will get in is Adam Lambert. He got such a unique and mysterious look. i think he could be a damn gd rocker like chris daughtry.
haha cant wait for tml, just happen to watch it on youtube. gosh i was right. amazing.
"adapted from my entry in one of my module blog"
I was watching the 9pm news today and they were showing this youtube video that was the most watched for this week. It involved a lady who became hysterical when she missed her flight.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xbVw7entkxg
The whole issue was not about the individual missing the flight but more of stereotyping like how it was "typical" for a chinese to behave like this, etc. As many have mentioned, it was also a case of self-discrimination, "chinese bashing chinese". There are also subtle differences (probably arising from politics and history) in how Chinese view themselves, especially Chinese from China, Hongkong and Taiwan. So, beware of how you generalise Chinese in different countries.
Today's american idol is so entertaining =) wonder why ch 5 decided to insert the local live and loaded into the 11pm slot :( now i have to wait till tml to watch the remaining contestants.
the 16yo Allison Iraheta is amazing... she is a sure-in for top 12. red hair and great voice. her rendition of alone by heart was O_O and look at the way she worked her mike and stage... cant believe she is only 16.
Kris Allen. i hope he gets in. firstly, he is so handsome and cute to look at even from a guy's perspective. plus, he sure gets votes from the chicks cos he is great with those soulful and blue songs. he turned it on and did his version of michael jackson song (Man in the mirror) which simon cowell surprisingly loved. i like it towards the end where he got more comfortable.
Last contestant (which i havent watched the entire show) i hope will get in is Adam Lambert. He got such a unique and mysterious look. i think he could be a damn gd rocker like chris daughtry.
haha cant wait for tml, just happen to watch it on youtube. gosh i was right. amazing.
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
..:: 612. The One With I Want To Go BKK ::..
ok. i am desperate to go bkk. anyone??? haha. i wanna go on first week of april which is their new year and water festival. so fun. get splashed for free. no need to go big splash.
just ended another group assignment by my wonderful rubric-queen prof. but i guess many will miss her as after recess it will be another boring chinese prof. hopefully none of that fengshui thing. for hr metrics, imagine he teaches you which angle to put the lucky charm in your company so that you will have good financial performance. miss 1 angle, lose how much profit. lol.
project overload in this recess week. i have 2 project meetings every day. fyp last lap.
i love "he just not that into you" though its a chick flick and quite crappy but i still enjoy watching jennifer aniston on screen. marley and me next! anyone?
ok. i am desperate to go bkk. anyone??? haha. i wanna go on first week of april which is their new year and water festival. so fun. get splashed for free. no need to go big splash.
just ended another group assignment by my wonderful rubric-queen prof. but i guess many will miss her as after recess it will be another boring chinese prof. hopefully none of that fengshui thing. for hr metrics, imagine he teaches you which angle to put the lucky charm in your company so that you will have good financial performance. miss 1 angle, lose how much profit. lol.
project overload in this recess week. i have 2 project meetings every day. fyp last lap.
i love "he just not that into you" though its a chick flick and quite crappy but i still enjoy watching jennifer aniston on screen. marley and me next! anyone?
Friday, February 20, 2009
..:: 611. The One With My BirthdaY ::..
happy birthday to myself!
this year so happy. first time celebrate in singapore after 2007 in finland and 2008 in china.
first off, thanks to all the well wishes and presents...
jiejiun - red limited edition puma watch
jiexi - mr. bump pouch
jiayi and yash - airasia e voucher and very cute and sweet powerpoint
*hearts* and loves my fyp mates. when i checked my mail at 12mn, i got an email prompt to redeem my voucher, i almost thought it was a spam until i saw their names. interesting gift! and i so wanted to travel to bangkok.
dinner at merchant and birthday song! thanks so much.
happy birthday to myself!
this year so happy. first time celebrate in singapore after 2007 in finland and 2008 in china.
first off, thanks to all the well wishes and presents...
jiejiun - red limited edition puma watch
jiexi - mr. bump pouch
jiayi and yash - airasia e voucher and very cute and sweet powerpoint
*hearts* and loves my fyp mates. when i checked my mail at 12mn, i got an email prompt to redeem my voucher, i almost thought it was a spam until i saw their names. interesting gift! and i so wanted to travel to bangkok.
dinner at merchant and birthday song! thanks so much.
Thursday, February 19, 2009
..:: 610. The One With Touch My Body ::..
saw this damn funny youtube video of a korean guy singing my idol's song. watch it and have a good laugh. must cross check the lyrics then u will find it more funny how he pronounces.
just watched american idol group 1 performance. i hope Alexis Grace, Anoop Desai, Danny Gokey get into top 12! they were awesome...
saw this damn funny youtube video of a korean guy singing my idol's song. watch it and have a good laugh. must cross check the lyrics then u will find it more funny how he pronounces.
just watched american idol group 1 performance. i hope Alexis Grace, Anoop Desai, Danny Gokey get into top 12! they were awesome...
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
..:: 609. The One With Slumdog ::..
great show! i think it was better than benjamin button though. meaningful plot and reflect the "dark" side of india, especially with the children forced to beg on the streets. got me worried a little about my trip to india. more variation in the humor part, compared with benjamin button's old man being struck by lightning seven times scenes.
yest played mahjong, gosh bad luck man, never win anything. :( think its a sign to tell me to stop playing.
so happy bought my belt from vol.ta. unique belt.
cant wait to catch american idol later. bride wars anyone?
great show! i think it was better than benjamin button though. meaningful plot and reflect the "dark" side of india, especially with the children forced to beg on the streets. got me worried a little about my trip to india. more variation in the humor part, compared with benjamin button's old man being struck by lightning seven times scenes.
yest played mahjong, gosh bad luck man, never win anything. :( think its a sign to tell me to stop playing.
so happy bought my belt from vol.ta. unique belt.
cant wait to catch american idol later. bride wars anyone?
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
..:: 608. The One With Awesome Week ::..
so happy that i caught curious case of benjamin button. strangely i dont find it draggy or long-winded. perhaps i am busy anticipating how brad pitt turns out as he grows younger. wonder how much make-up they need to cover the mrt lines on his forehead. that is why at a certain stage when he was supposed to portray a teenager, he had headband on. even botox could not help. lol.
i want to watch slumdog! anyone?
spent monday afternoon in the hot blazing sun at gul road. going door-to-door to give surveys to the SMEs was freaking tiring. Poor yash has to go around in high heels and after we left the place, we smelt like metal rust, rotten banana and all the weird smell you get from warehouses.
went suntec to meet some ceo, wow, the view from the conference room is so nice. 33rd floor. see all the hotels and even marina bay. hope we managed our impressions well. =) had great phad thai thanks to yash's recommendation.
today i had an amazing psychology presentation. had to do it alone cos my group mates were psy majors and had to study for tests. So one-man show it was. i was glad i was the last one to present... save the best for the last :P
the prof's words "very good presentation" just sank in and fed my ego. for the learning points, she just had to read off my slides. was rather pleased with the slides cos i included frequency tables, defined every concept and drew correlations. my group mates said "no wonder you were from business". double ego-boost!
lastly, just when the class ended, another classmate came to me and requested whether i could send her my slides. o_O i was taken aback but agreed in the end, how could i say no right? triple ego-boost.
walked out of the classroom with a big head. haha.
birthday coming soon. no plans yet. should i do a shopping spree?
so happy that i caught curious case of benjamin button. strangely i dont find it draggy or long-winded. perhaps i am busy anticipating how brad pitt turns out as he grows younger. wonder how much make-up they need to cover the mrt lines on his forehead. that is why at a certain stage when he was supposed to portray a teenager, he had headband on. even botox could not help. lol.
i want to watch slumdog! anyone?
spent monday afternoon in the hot blazing sun at gul road. going door-to-door to give surveys to the SMEs was freaking tiring. Poor yash has to go around in high heels and after we left the place, we smelt like metal rust, rotten banana and all the weird smell you get from warehouses.
went suntec to meet some ceo, wow, the view from the conference room is so nice. 33rd floor. see all the hotels and even marina bay. hope we managed our impressions well. =) had great phad thai thanks to yash's recommendation.
today i had an amazing psychology presentation. had to do it alone cos my group mates were psy majors and had to study for tests. So one-man show it was. i was glad i was the last one to present... save the best for the last :P
the prof's words "very good presentation" just sank in and fed my ego. for the learning points, she just had to read off my slides. was rather pleased with the slides cos i included frequency tables, defined every concept and drew correlations. my group mates said "no wonder you were from business". double ego-boost!
lastly, just when the class ended, another classmate came to me and requested whether i could send her my slides. o_O i was taken aback but agreed in the end, how could i say no right? triple ego-boost.
walked out of the classroom with a big head. haha.
birthday coming soon. no plans yet. should i do a shopping spree?
Sunday, February 15, 2009
..:: 607. The One With V Day ::..
started the day volunteering with my red cross friends doing footdrill competition. was the competition official and it was fun. the poor cadets must be feeling stressed so i tried to be as nice as i could. the 7 teams i took were generally ok but perhaps the commanders were not exactly up to my expectations. how well the squad performs really depends on the commander's judgment as i believe all the schools have been training hard for this day. there were a few who gave wrong commands which sets themselves apart literally when the squads marched out of the boundaries.
made me reflect on the days when i was competing. the competition was so much tougher then. had a 2 day event rather than 1 now. Competed in the district level and the top 2 would enter the finals. During my time as a pioneer batch, we have so much drive. the first year we participated, we trained hard and you could see the teamwork and the desire to win in everyone's eyes. we had training twice a week and a training camp over the holidays. everyone pulled their weights, we spent little time settling individual differences and the product was a first runner up in our first attempt for a new school. Of course going into finals, we aimed to have our standards as close to the top schools. during my time, the CHIJ(TP), RGS and RI were the powerhouses. missed those times...
the final round this year was a fancy drill component. i dont understand why the first few teams had to count out loud while executing. maybe the echo from the music? but the main aim is to use the beat of the music to execute your drills right?
Also, i found another use for my 11B (green IC)! 1 for 1 buffet at holiday inn. surprised! anyway food is nice and so is the band.
you would have notice that there are a lot of singles during vday if you go lan-gaming. practically every lan shop is FULL! arghz. we went around hunting for one to play left 4 dead but couldnt :( in the end, we found one lan shop and played random games for near to 4 hours.
started the day volunteering with my red cross friends doing footdrill competition. was the competition official and it was fun. the poor cadets must be feeling stressed so i tried to be as nice as i could. the 7 teams i took were generally ok but perhaps the commanders were not exactly up to my expectations. how well the squad performs really depends on the commander's judgment as i believe all the schools have been training hard for this day. there were a few who gave wrong commands which sets themselves apart literally when the squads marched out of the boundaries.
made me reflect on the days when i was competing. the competition was so much tougher then. had a 2 day event rather than 1 now. Competed in the district level and the top 2 would enter the finals. During my time as a pioneer batch, we have so much drive. the first year we participated, we trained hard and you could see the teamwork and the desire to win in everyone's eyes. we had training twice a week and a training camp over the holidays. everyone pulled their weights, we spent little time settling individual differences and the product was a first runner up in our first attempt for a new school. Of course going into finals, we aimed to have our standards as close to the top schools. during my time, the CHIJ(TP), RGS and RI were the powerhouses. missed those times...
the final round this year was a fancy drill component. i dont understand why the first few teams had to count out loud while executing. maybe the echo from the music? but the main aim is to use the beat of the music to execute your drills right?
Also, i found another use for my 11B (green IC)! 1 for 1 buffet at holiday inn. surprised! anyway food is nice and so is the band.
you would have notice that there are a lot of singles during vday if you go lan-gaming. practically every lan shop is FULL! arghz. we went around hunting for one to play left 4 dead but couldnt :( in the end, we found one lan shop and played random games for near to 4 hours.
Monday, February 09, 2009
..:: 606. The One With Boredom ::..
two interesting encounters today.
first, one chinese student was trying to tap his matriculation card to board the bus. i guess you can forgive people for some moments when they slipped up.
second, something that i cannot stand. this girl waited for the bus to stop and dig in her bag to find her ez link card. in the end, the bus drove off cos she didnt sound off nor ring the bell in time. if you know you going to alight soon, get your damn card/wallet ready. dont make the whole bus wait for you. arghz.
managed to finish 4 essays in 1.5 days. quite a record for me not to mention mentally draining. the most useless essay i have ever done. reflection on role of hr metrics and strategic hr. to think my prof mention that she updates her contents every year but her lecture notes still dated 2005.
reflection should be straight to the point. dunno why would people want to even force an analogy in reflection when it doesnt make any sense. i squirmed while reading it.
did this 25 random things for my psychology module on self-construal.
1. my old name was TAN JIAN LIANG JOHN, got my new name from a fengshui master and hence I am known as CHEN XING TIAN JOHN now.
2. when i order mac, i always change my soft drink to milk.
3. i love travelling. i would spend my last penny on travelling.
4. i may do extreme things to make a person happy. when i see the person happy, i feel even happier.
5. i hate people walking slowly in front of me. maybe i am impatient.
6. i hate it when people tell me i should eat more. in fact, i eat a lot just that i dont grow fat.
7. i can be critical to the people close to me. it's a form of being frank and straightforward but somehow ended up offending people.
8. i am a super competitive person but of cos winning is not everything.
9. i try very hard to be tidy and i admire people who are neat.
10. i am a sensitive new age guy. i would end up thinking too much about how people think of me.
11. i immerse myself in fashion, at least i try. so i am willing to spend a lot on clothes.
12. i enjoy "bimbotic" and brainless shows like america's next top model and sex and the city.
13. dramas with hospital setting are must-watch for me like grey's anatomy and new heart (korean)
14. i love to dance. that is why i love to club as well. i am now into ballroom/social dancing.
15. i enjoy staying alone.
16. i dislike storerooms cos that is where i got the scar on my forehead.
17. i suppress my aggression very well. size is not in question.
18. i buy a shirt every month. cant wait for uniqlo
19. i love late night suppers.
20. i have been in red cross for 10 years and counting.
21. i would like to train up and have a try at modelling. (dont laugh). burberry uses lean guys.
22. i dont use wax. they spoil my hair.
23. i go for facial and use a variety of face products from scrub to cleanser to toner to hydrating gel to eye cream to moisturizer, etc.
24. i love to play volleyball - indoor or beach.
25. i love my friends, cannot do without them.
two interesting encounters today.
first, one chinese student was trying to tap his matriculation card to board the bus. i guess you can forgive people for some moments when they slipped up.
second, something that i cannot stand. this girl waited for the bus to stop and dig in her bag to find her ez link card. in the end, the bus drove off cos she didnt sound off nor ring the bell in time. if you know you going to alight soon, get your damn card/wallet ready. dont make the whole bus wait for you. arghz.
managed to finish 4 essays in 1.5 days. quite a record for me not to mention mentally draining. the most useless essay i have ever done. reflection on role of hr metrics and strategic hr. to think my prof mention that she updates her contents every year but her lecture notes still dated 2005.
reflection should be straight to the point. dunno why would people want to even force an analogy in reflection when it doesnt make any sense. i squirmed while reading it.
did this 25 random things for my psychology module on self-construal.
1. my old name was TAN JIAN LIANG JOHN, got my new name from a fengshui master and hence I am known as CHEN XING TIAN JOHN now.
2. when i order mac, i always change my soft drink to milk.
3. i love travelling. i would spend my last penny on travelling.
4. i may do extreme things to make a person happy. when i see the person happy, i feel even happier.
5. i hate people walking slowly in front of me. maybe i am impatient.
6. i hate it when people tell me i should eat more. in fact, i eat a lot just that i dont grow fat.
7. i can be critical to the people close to me. it's a form of being frank and straightforward but somehow ended up offending people.
8. i am a super competitive person but of cos winning is not everything.
9. i try very hard to be tidy and i admire people who are neat.
10. i am a sensitive new age guy. i would end up thinking too much about how people think of me.
11. i immerse myself in fashion, at least i try. so i am willing to spend a lot on clothes.
12. i enjoy "bimbotic" and brainless shows like america's next top model and sex and the city.
13. dramas with hospital setting are must-watch for me like grey's anatomy and new heart (korean)
14. i love to dance. that is why i love to club as well. i am now into ballroom/social dancing.
15. i enjoy staying alone.
16. i dislike storerooms cos that is where i got the scar on my forehead.
17. i suppress my aggression very well. size is not in question.
18. i buy a shirt every month. cant wait for uniqlo
19. i love late night suppers.
20. i have been in red cross for 10 years and counting.
21. i would like to train up and have a try at modelling. (dont laugh). burberry uses lean guys.
22. i dont use wax. they spoil my hair.
23. i go for facial and use a variety of face products from scrub to cleanser to toner to hydrating gel to eye cream to moisturizer, etc.
24. i love to play volleyball - indoor or beach.
25. i love my friends, cannot do without them.
Saturday, January 31, 2009
..:: 605. The One With Resolution ::..
forgot i have not made new year resolution. since i will be starting to work this year = more $, i can do more stuff!
-get a PSP Slim, able to mod, ruby red!
-travel to bangkok (anyone?)
-get one real item (bag/pants/shirt) from my favourite brand, D&G
-get A for at least 3 out of 5 of my modules
-get my driving license
gosh, that already look like it gonna cost a lot.
have you made urs?
forgot i have not made new year resolution. since i will be starting to work this year = more $, i can do more stuff!
-get a PSP Slim, able to mod, ruby red!
-travel to bangkok (anyone?)
-get one real item (bag/pants/shirt) from my favourite brand, D&G
-get A for at least 3 out of 5 of my modules
-get my driving license
gosh, that already look like it gonna cost a lot.
have you made urs?
..:: 604. The One With Shopping ::..
Again? haha i had a make-up class till 830pm yesterday and made a trip down town to catch a movie, the "highly anticipated" fann wong and christopher lee wedding show. i must say some scenes are quite "forced" but it was nice watching both of them fight. of cos the other key actor was the "hei ren" the tanned hunk who had to act as a feminine guy.
went to buy another shirt! somehow i cant resist once i tried it on and look good.
i looked at my course site and saw a deadline looming. the assignment is so -_-
"Submit a 500-800 word document (excluding references, graphics, etc.) in your respective SEM site. The paper should contain a discussion on your thoughts regarding HR metrics and Strategic HR. Draw on what you learnt from the G1 exercise, personal experiences & readings."
own feelings and thoughts? really make me feel its like forcing something out of nothing.
Again? haha i had a make-up class till 830pm yesterday and made a trip down town to catch a movie, the "highly anticipated" fann wong and christopher lee wedding show. i must say some scenes are quite "forced" but it was nice watching both of them fight. of cos the other key actor was the "hei ren" the tanned hunk who had to act as a feminine guy.
went to buy another shirt! somehow i cant resist once i tried it on and look good.
i looked at my course site and saw a deadline looming. the assignment is so -_-
"Submit a 500-800 word document (excluding references, graphics, etc.) in your respective SEM site. The paper should contain a discussion on your thoughts regarding HR metrics and Strategic HR. Draw on what you learnt from the G1 exercise, personal experiences & readings."
own feelings and thoughts? really make me feel its like forcing something out of nothing.
Thursday, January 29, 2009
..:: 603. The One With Shopping ::..
today was out with my friend, eating and shopping. die i must resist the temptation to shop. spent about 100+ on these...
still quite high from my clubbing. havent had so much fun ... saw a lot of familiar faces, too bad had to leave early :( all my frens are flying to taiwan, bangkok, kl, for short trips except me :(
i told my fren about an idea that i have which was to let my class which has lots of exchange students to try "lou hei" or the tossing of yu sheng. i intended to buy a set for each group and decided to ask permission from the prof to do it. i didnt know another group was planning to do it so i got a surprise sms asking why i copy their idea? -_-
came home then got jio by my frens to go play left 4 dead. really nice and cool game shooting all the zombies. wonder whether i will have nightmares, especially when i saw some of the zombies faces up close when attacked. plus the sound they make :X
today was out with my friend, eating and shopping. die i must resist the temptation to shop. spent about 100+ on these...
still quite high from my clubbing. havent had so much fun ... saw a lot of familiar faces, too bad had to leave early :( all my frens are flying to taiwan, bangkok, kl, for short trips except me :(
i told my fren about an idea that i have which was to let my class which has lots of exchange students to try "lou hei" or the tossing of yu sheng. i intended to buy a set for each group and decided to ask permission from the prof to do it. i didnt know another group was planning to do it so i got a surprise sms asking why i copy their idea? -_-
came home then got jio by my frens to go play left 4 dead. really nice and cool game shooting all the zombies. wonder whether i will have nightmares, especially when i saw some of the zombies faces up close when attacked. plus the sound they make :X
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
..:: 602. The One With CNY ::..
went clubbing on the first day of CNY and it was fabulous! though crowded but the music was great and so was the company. saw many of my friends and got to sip champagne, liquor, beer and madonna's give it to me sounded so good on remix.
then second day of new year started off with my module's experiential learning where we did house visiting.
the exchange students enjoying the new year goodies... and angpows! haha
then we had malay food for lunch. delicious! more interesting to see how they eat with their hands. it was really satisfying eating with your hand. there was so much food!
look at the spread. the 3-course dessert not up yet.
enjoy eating with hands and a really good tour guide Yash.
photo before we left.
so happy today, i visited my aunties whom i have not seen for 2 years. they were so excited when they saw me and said that i looked more handsome. haha. they really love my outfit today and i think its that they havent seen me for so long and they all got so excited knowing that i am going to graduate this year. they want to take studio pic with me when i am in my grad gown, or watever u call it.
and i have booked my flight to india! so exciting. looking for people to join me for grad trip. awesome deal for flight ticket. dun miss it~
went clubbing on the first day of CNY and it was fabulous! though crowded but the music was great and so was the company. saw many of my friends and got to sip champagne, liquor, beer and madonna's give it to me sounded so good on remix.
then second day of new year started off with my module's experiential learning where we did house visiting.
the exchange students enjoying the new year goodies... and angpows! haha
then we had malay food for lunch. delicious! more interesting to see how they eat with their hands. it was really satisfying eating with your hand. there was so much food!
look at the spread. the 3-course dessert not up yet.
enjoy eating with hands and a really good tour guide Yash.
photo before we left.
so happy today, i visited my aunties whom i have not seen for 2 years. they were so excited when they saw me and said that i looked more handsome. haha. they really love my outfit today and i think its that they havent seen me for so long and they all got so excited knowing that i am going to graduate this year. they want to take studio pic with me when i am in my grad gown, or watever u call it.
and i have booked my flight to india! so exciting. looking for people to join me for grad trip. awesome deal for flight ticket. dun miss it~
Sunday, January 25, 2009
..:: 601. The One With Cultural Intelligence Class ::..
the class gets more interesting... we were starting on this new topic on cultural intelligence, CQ. its like your IQ and EQ. so there was this class activity where you have to act according to certain verbal/non-verbal cues... so my partner who is a Norwegian dude had to first talk loudly about anything... as he was talking about his passion in football so i could sense his passion and he looked normal speaking loudly as he claimed he usually does.
then he had to speak while trying to move his lips as little as possible. that felt kinda weird like "he was coming on to me" (quote from another guy)... when i heard that comment, i almost flipped. hilarious! u can imagine a big guy pouting his lips.
mine was quite a challenge! i had to first look him in the eye when talking. i was so distracted that i could not speak properly. i guess he noticed and was laughing as well. you know how hard is it to look intensely into his blue eyes and talk? those eyes are killers! and i am not used to looking at guys in the eyes for that long. i wondered if others share the same experience.
next was to look at his neck while talking. that was so much easier but then i felt i wasnt communicating. i was just rattling off stuff i needed to say. if only it was a girl for a partner, that would have been different. HAHA.
my buddy mats (the same guy for class) was chatting with me on msn and he wanted to do a tatoo for his grandparents...
"hmm, I am considering a tatoo on my back shoulder, in chinese. It would be for/about my grandma and grandpa, so I need those two. Then i need "love" "courage""faith" and similar words...maybe 5-10 signs to describe them and honor them "
wow. and he shared with me whole loads of stuff which was amazing... really hope his gang would get to backpack with us to india. listening to their stories during train rides would be fun.
k more updates on my cross-cultural experiences... we will be doing house-visiting on tue as part of our experiential learning... hopefully we can eat at a malay restaurant.
the class gets more interesting... we were starting on this new topic on cultural intelligence, CQ. its like your IQ and EQ. so there was this class activity where you have to act according to certain verbal/non-verbal cues... so my partner who is a Norwegian dude had to first talk loudly about anything... as he was talking about his passion in football so i could sense his passion and he looked normal speaking loudly as he claimed he usually does.
then he had to speak while trying to move his lips as little as possible. that felt kinda weird like "he was coming on to me" (quote from another guy)... when i heard that comment, i almost flipped. hilarious! u can imagine a big guy pouting his lips.
mine was quite a challenge! i had to first look him in the eye when talking. i was so distracted that i could not speak properly. i guess he noticed and was laughing as well. you know how hard is it to look intensely into his blue eyes and talk? those eyes are killers! and i am not used to looking at guys in the eyes for that long. i wondered if others share the same experience.
next was to look at his neck while talking. that was so much easier but then i felt i wasnt communicating. i was just rattling off stuff i needed to say. if only it was a girl for a partner, that would have been different. HAHA.
my buddy mats (the same guy for class) was chatting with me on msn and he wanted to do a tatoo for his grandparents...
"hmm, I am considering a tatoo on my back shoulder, in chinese. It would be for/about my grandma and grandpa, so I need those two. Then i need "love" "courage""faith" and similar words...maybe 5-10 signs to describe them and honor them "
wow. and he shared with me whole loads of stuff which was amazing... really hope his gang would get to backpack with us to india. listening to their stories during train rides would be fun.
k more updates on my cross-cultural experiences... we will be doing house-visiting on tue as part of our experiential learning... hopefully we can eat at a malay restaurant.
Saturday, January 24, 2009
..:: 600. The One With Grey's Anatomy ::..
gosh. cant believe i cried watching the latest episode 5x13. agree with yash that it is like the most intense episode ever. enough for the chief resident and the chief of surgery to cross the line. was watching on youtube. part 4/5 already had my tears welling up when izzie found out that her dead ex was "here for her", is she going to die? and the part where the mum told her son that he can go... then he went into coding. i think it really mirrors the real thing. like when my grandma was holding on in the hospital, i felt that she waited for all the people that she wanted to see before she passed on. When the last relative we expected flew over to see her, she coded. now the sound of coding reminded me of my grandma :( the part when dr. bailey was kind of praying for forgiveness was also touching...the last part where meredith went to watch the prisoner being executed was the defining moment. you guys should watch this episode even if you have never watch before cos the emotions protrayed are really universal.
lucky i am not watching this on chinese new year, imagine red eyes.
anyway, went to look for my career manager yesterday and i have decided to take officer coach as my first choice. hopefully i get it. there are other "tours" that i am gunning for like the battalion S1 doing manpower or even to mindef doing manpower. i adore my career manager, she was sensitive and understand the importance of career planning and knowing the possibility that we will be deluded if we were assigned to position that we are not prepared for.
*pray hard*
not really enjoying my hr metrics class though. i mean i have a great group and friends in class, but just the delivery of the class makes me unmotivated. i prefer modules that encourage us to read extensively to complete certain assignments. somehow we are given these readings and we will expect assignments from these readings. didnt get much insights, perhaps its still early in the course but i felt we had a lot of instructions and as expected lots of metrics telling us how to rate our peers and how we would be graded.
gosh. cant believe i cried watching the latest episode 5x13. agree with yash that it is like the most intense episode ever. enough for the chief resident and the chief of surgery to cross the line. was watching on youtube. part 4/5 already had my tears welling up when izzie found out that her dead ex was "here for her", is she going to die? and the part where the mum told her son that he can go... then he went into coding. i think it really mirrors the real thing. like when my grandma was holding on in the hospital, i felt that she waited for all the people that she wanted to see before she passed on. When the last relative we expected flew over to see her, she coded. now the sound of coding reminded me of my grandma :( the part when dr. bailey was kind of praying for forgiveness was also touching...the last part where meredith went to watch the prisoner being executed was the defining moment. you guys should watch this episode even if you have never watch before cos the emotions protrayed are really universal.
lucky i am not watching this on chinese new year, imagine red eyes.
anyway, went to look for my career manager yesterday and i have decided to take officer coach as my first choice. hopefully i get it. there are other "tours" that i am gunning for like the battalion S1 doing manpower or even to mindef doing manpower. i adore my career manager, she was sensitive and understand the importance of career planning and knowing the possibility that we will be deluded if we were assigned to position that we are not prepared for.
*pray hard*
not really enjoying my hr metrics class though. i mean i have a great group and friends in class, but just the delivery of the class makes me unmotivated. i prefer modules that encourage us to read extensively to complete certain assignments. somehow we are given these readings and we will expect assignments from these readings. didnt get much insights, perhaps its still early in the course but i felt we had a lot of instructions and as expected lots of metrics telling us how to rate our peers and how we would be graded.
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
..:: 599. The One With Random Thots ::..
first off, just saw wiki for prison break, season 4 will be the last! :( kinda sad but expected it. the series cant hold for that long, last episode they played was in dec and the next will only be out in apr ??
was flipping through the newspaper and saw a section on ST today talking about budget day on thursday. 4 wrote in and 3 were from NUS and 1 from SMU. i didnt look at what they wrote first but where the writer came from. just gave me a feeling that ntu students either didnt care much or whose comments were not published. some asked for university fee freeze while others talked about subsidising bills and expenses for the lower income families. I think looking after the lower income families are more important, cant imagine families living on 30 dollars for a week.
there are also articles about raising funding opportunities for SMEs but i think the credit risk assessment and stuff made lending/borrowing even harder for them. justify sustainability for themselves in this uncertain period is already a challenge.
next, more civil service jobs are created. saw an article on 30,000 jobs openings to meet the influx of fresh grads and school leavers. minstry of home affairs and also health are increasing their hires! plus mindef too =) they are also looking for defence policy officers and more, i think they are having a mega fair next month at the ngee ann civic area.
join MINDEF! =)
was reading this article where mr teo critiscised one of the perm sect for his insensitivity in posting about his experience during his vacation spending big bucks to learn bakery and stuff in europe. ouch. kena so many arrows, public and own parliament members .
but i must agree, being a civil servant, one should conduct himself/herself with decorum and humility and not do things that stand in contrast to the values and ethos of the service. lol nobody says being a civil servant or a minister is easy. i guess the act of sharing his experience was a moment of folly...
shack. i need a break! had classes from 830am to 530pm and just got home and i am having an online meeting with my metrics group. arghz.
first off, just saw wiki for prison break, season 4 will be the last! :( kinda sad but expected it. the series cant hold for that long, last episode they played was in dec and the next will only be out in apr ??
was flipping through the newspaper and saw a section on ST today talking about budget day on thursday. 4 wrote in and 3 were from NUS and 1 from SMU. i didnt look at what they wrote first but where the writer came from. just gave me a feeling that ntu students either didnt care much or whose comments were not published. some asked for university fee freeze while others talked about subsidising bills and expenses for the lower income families. I think looking after the lower income families are more important, cant imagine families living on 30 dollars for a week.
there are also articles about raising funding opportunities for SMEs but i think the credit risk assessment and stuff made lending/borrowing even harder for them. justify sustainability for themselves in this uncertain period is already a challenge.
next, more civil service jobs are created. saw an article on 30,000 jobs openings to meet the influx of fresh grads and school leavers. minstry of home affairs and also health are increasing their hires! plus mindef too =) they are also looking for defence policy officers and more, i think they are having a mega fair next month at the ngee ann civic area.
join MINDEF! =)
was reading this article where mr teo critiscised one of the perm sect for his insensitivity in posting about his experience during his vacation spending big bucks to learn bakery and stuff in europe. ouch. kena so many arrows, public and own parliament members .
but i must agree, being a civil servant, one should conduct himself/herself with decorum and humility and not do things that stand in contrast to the values and ethos of the service. lol nobody says being a civil servant or a minister is easy. i guess the act of sharing his experience was a moment of folly...
shack. i need a break! had classes from 830am to 530pm and just got home and i am having an online meeting with my metrics group. arghz.
Monday, January 19, 2009
..:: 598. The One With School ::..
friday started off shaky. went to class and found myself sitting alone. luckily Valarie and kah yan came to sit with me. looking around to see if i could join any group but all of them looked so cohesive.
but happy that at the end of the day, i found a group! and one which i wanted to work with for a long time but no chance. hope sparks and As come. lol
second class was so much fun! cultural intelligence. started with introduction of ourselves and it was nice to see for the first and last time a class with 3/4 foreigners. eh like the prof pointed out, only singaporeans mentioned that they wanna get A for the module as a goal they want to achieve in this course.
hur hur... i was bitching to my friend but he shot me back "exchange students pass/fail of course not interested to get A"... true to a certain extent, not all are pass/fail. my rationale was of course who dont want an A but as a first impression and introduction, of all reasons, you mentioned you want an A. they are being practical, fine. i was still quite happy that most of the exchange students wanted to know more asians and asian culture. hope i can find travelling buddies among them, think some of them are really fun.
the way they shared their life experiences, some were so animated and there were so much laughter and prob the seminar where the students shared and talked more than the prof. though my fyp mate, yash, was sitting far away but we could still see each other and rolling our eyeballs lol (not at the exchange students of course)
then they have this game where we are supposed to get into project groups at the end of the game. i think its the chemistry... we ended up same group lol. after "trials and tribulations" lol... very happy with my group. all seemed nice except kah yan whom i quarrel a lot with but we are still best friends =)
we have this experiential learning activity... so looking forward to it. its like a group excursion, take photo and blog about it. really hope we can attend a malay wedding cos i think the exchange students would not have a chance to experience it. going to chinatown would be fun i guess.
and i went marina square to pop by my friend nicholas's shop but he was not in :(
bought a pair of berms for 18 BUCKS! from bodynits. how cheap! my friend got a tee from clubmarc for 19.90! didnt know they have such cheap stuff... was at bugis street and i tell you, the place should be on the list of weekend get-away. get away from that place! so freaking packed. the traffic lights between bugis street and bugis junction are scary. u see tons of people stuck while waiting for the traffic and when they start crossing, it feels like they are crawling.
i hate people who walk slowly in front of me. will step on them if i have to. arghz. some girls even stand outside the shop and look at the displays. HELLO, the corridor not very broad you know. funny sight was the boyfriends trying to drag the girls by their hands like cows!
the stuff there is cheap and so-so.
the upgrading of JP was a head-turner! gosh, i bought a really nice loafers that looked branded. maybe i make it look branded. lol my friends were asking me what brand. no brand man, i make it look expensive :P
anyway, so much to shop. and jp now has my fave thai express.. yummy noodles and tom yam soup. LUNCH anyone???
took a cab to school and this disgusting cab driver kept burping. loudly. was so irritated cos his belly was like full of gas and burped every other min. gross. i was afraid something might come out from his mouth other than the sound.
i love grey's latest episode. so touching esp the last part where meredith "advised" the prisoner at death row... u cant help but pity both of them. whatever makes you sleep better. that's how you should live your life huh... so happy that derek's mum accepted meredith and owen hunt is such an emo guy lol. bet girls are loving him, the cool hunk with a soft spot. we need more of such plots! i love the prisoner at death row.
friday started off shaky. went to class and found myself sitting alone. luckily Valarie and kah yan came to sit with me. looking around to see if i could join any group but all of them looked so cohesive.
but happy that at the end of the day, i found a group! and one which i wanted to work with for a long time but no chance. hope sparks and As come. lol
second class was so much fun! cultural intelligence. started with introduction of ourselves and it was nice to see for the first and last time a class with 3/4 foreigners. eh like the prof pointed out, only singaporeans mentioned that they wanna get A for the module as a goal they want to achieve in this course.
hur hur... i was bitching to my friend but he shot me back "exchange students pass/fail of course not interested to get A"... true to a certain extent, not all are pass/fail. my rationale was of course who dont want an A but as a first impression and introduction, of all reasons, you mentioned you want an A. they are being practical, fine. i was still quite happy that most of the exchange students wanted to know more asians and asian culture. hope i can find travelling buddies among them, think some of them are really fun.
the way they shared their life experiences, some were so animated and there were so much laughter and prob the seminar where the students shared and talked more than the prof. though my fyp mate, yash, was sitting far away but we could still see each other and rolling our eyeballs lol (not at the exchange students of course)
then they have this game where we are supposed to get into project groups at the end of the game. i think its the chemistry... we ended up same group lol. after "trials and tribulations" lol... very happy with my group. all seemed nice except kah yan whom i quarrel a lot with but we are still best friends =)
we have this experiential learning activity... so looking forward to it. its like a group excursion, take photo and blog about it. really hope we can attend a malay wedding cos i think the exchange students would not have a chance to experience it. going to chinatown would be fun i guess.
and i went marina square to pop by my friend nicholas's shop but he was not in :(
bought a pair of berms for 18 BUCKS! from bodynits. how cheap! my friend got a tee from clubmarc for 19.90! didnt know they have such cheap stuff... was at bugis street and i tell you, the place should be on the list of weekend get-away. get away from that place! so freaking packed. the traffic lights between bugis street and bugis junction are scary. u see tons of people stuck while waiting for the traffic and when they start crossing, it feels like they are crawling.
i hate people who walk slowly in front of me. will step on them if i have to. arghz. some girls even stand outside the shop and look at the displays. HELLO, the corridor not very broad you know. funny sight was the boyfriends trying to drag the girls by their hands like cows!
the stuff there is cheap and so-so.
the upgrading of JP was a head-turner! gosh, i bought a really nice loafers that looked branded. maybe i make it look branded. lol my friends were asking me what brand. no brand man, i make it look expensive :P
anyway, so much to shop. and jp now has my fave thai express.. yummy noodles and tom yam soup. LUNCH anyone???
took a cab to school and this disgusting cab driver kept burping. loudly. was so irritated cos his belly was like full of gas and burped every other min. gross. i was afraid something might come out from his mouth other than the sound.
i love grey's latest episode. so touching esp the last part where meredith "advised" the prisoner at death row... u cant help but pity both of them. whatever makes you sleep better. that's how you should live your life huh... so happy that derek's mum accepted meredith and owen hunt is such an emo guy lol. bet girls are loving him, the cool hunk with a soft spot. we need more of such plots! i love the prisoner at death row.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
..:: 597. The One With Hay ::..
just applied for a part-time position assisting consultant doing research work for hay group. gosh. my dream company, hopefully i get selected... can earn some money for my grad trip =)
think i caught flu again, had a nap but woke up feeling feverish.
but! later nicholas having sale 20%! though most stuff are for female but i think i shall go visit his store in marina square... do support too though the price might be a bit steep but i think the quality and design justify the price. =) if you going there to buy, can say i recommend too =)
happen to watch mobtv and they introduced some shops where you can buy nice clothes. they look affordable...
http://www.tangerinetofu.com/
saw my sports club frenz, lina and peisee... so happy. lina was so nice gave me a goodie bag from sports expose and she is still so active in sports club, organising vertical marathon for 3 times ! amaze. i missed my times in surf & sweat as well. minus the sandflies' bites.
and lina is taking 11 AU this sem! envy... i am taking 19AU, so much for being in the last sem. but all are my favourite modules and i am proud to say i have never exercise satisfactory/unsatisfactory (SU) option throughout my 3 yrs in nbs.. yea.
bh225 - hr research
bh227 - selection and assessment
bh331 - cultural intelligence at work
bh326 - hr metrics
hp329 - psychology in the asian context
just wondering why bh225 is 3 AUs but we are having 4 hrs each week...
just applied for a part-time position assisting consultant doing research work for hay group. gosh. my dream company, hopefully i get selected... can earn some money for my grad trip =)
think i caught flu again, had a nap but woke up feeling feverish.
but! later nicholas having sale 20%! though most stuff are for female but i think i shall go visit his store in marina square... do support too though the price might be a bit steep but i think the quality and design justify the price. =) if you going there to buy, can say i recommend too =)
happen to watch mobtv and they introduced some shops where you can buy nice clothes. they look affordable...
http://www.tangerinetofu.com/
saw my sports club frenz, lina and peisee... so happy. lina was so nice gave me a goodie bag from sports expose and she is still so active in sports club, organising vertical marathon for 3 times ! amaze. i missed my times in surf & sweat as well. minus the sandflies' bites.
and lina is taking 11 AU this sem! envy... i am taking 19AU, so much for being in the last sem. but all are my favourite modules and i am proud to say i have never exercise satisfactory/unsatisfactory (SU) option throughout my 3 yrs in nbs.. yea.
bh225 - hr research
bh227 - selection and assessment
bh331 - cultural intelligence at work
bh326 - hr metrics
hp329 - psychology in the asian context
just wondering why bh225 is 3 AUs but we are having 4 hrs each week...
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
..:: 596. The One With Groups ::..
dunno if this sem is really that 'suay'. first kena dropped out from my hr metrics group, then today at my hr research group, the prof wanted me to join another group of 3 girls cos they are under strength while my group has 3 guys. haiz. if i knew that i am not going to be with my frens for the group, i would have switched to take tue class for my hr metrics where my fyp mates are in.
then again, the topic for my hr research has been set so i dont think i should switch and make the class change plans again. haiz haiz.
my appeal for social psy was unsuccessful while my appeal for psy in asian context was approved. yeah. happy that i will be seeing my positive psy prof again, she is always so happy and positive. lol. just that this time will have 5 reports of 2 page to write and a closed-book exam. :( hopefully i can score as well. taking a level 3 module - challenging... but the prof is expert in research on psy in asian context so this is like her pet module showcasing all her previous researches etc.
i think i will be shifting out soon from hall, not used to staying in hall anymore. maybe never clean thoroughly, spent the whole night scratching. but waking up at 8am and still making it to class seem really appealling. then thinking of saving 900 (though reimbursed) for hostel fees would suffice at least 1 more week in india for grad trip.
talking abt it, my allowance haven come in. WHY? i received the read receipt, i am sure they saw my email asking about the allowance but no reply. what is this? i'm so going to blast their mail if i dont receive by tml.
also was watching the so-called final chapter 3 min of little nyonya. it was CRAP. having 2 leads standing in front of ur screen thanking you for watching the show? wth. they might as well dont play that. it was not even a closure or anything. lame.
dunno if this sem is really that 'suay'. first kena dropped out from my hr metrics group, then today at my hr research group, the prof wanted me to join another group of 3 girls cos they are under strength while my group has 3 guys. haiz. if i knew that i am not going to be with my frens for the group, i would have switched to take tue class for my hr metrics where my fyp mates are in.
then again, the topic for my hr research has been set so i dont think i should switch and make the class change plans again. haiz haiz.
my appeal for social psy was unsuccessful while my appeal for psy in asian context was approved. yeah. happy that i will be seeing my positive psy prof again, she is always so happy and positive. lol. just that this time will have 5 reports of 2 page to write and a closed-book exam. :( hopefully i can score as well. taking a level 3 module - challenging... but the prof is expert in research on psy in asian context so this is like her pet module showcasing all her previous researches etc.
i think i will be shifting out soon from hall, not used to staying in hall anymore. maybe never clean thoroughly, spent the whole night scratching. but waking up at 8am and still making it to class seem really appealling. then thinking of saving 900 (though reimbursed) for hostel fees would suffice at least 1 more week in india for grad trip.
talking abt it, my allowance haven come in. WHY? i received the read receipt, i am sure they saw my email asking about the allowance but no reply. what is this? i'm so going to blast their mail if i dont receive by tml.
also was watching the so-called final chapter 3 min of little nyonya. it was CRAP. having 2 leads standing in front of ur screen thanking you for watching the show? wth. they might as well dont play that. it was not even a closure or anything. lame.
Monday, January 12, 2009
..:: 595. The One With Red Cliff ::..
met with someone with my fyp grp. inspiring as usual... shed a different light on UniSIM and learnt a lot on doing qualitative research.
went to catch red cliff, totally rocked more than the first one. perhaps there were more fighting and less playing on guzheng, talking crap, all the "dancing" with swords.... as usual if u are the no nonsense kind, follow the history closely, you would not like the show as much cos the story plot was so twisted. i mean if u like it to be like what the history books depict, you might as well watch the drama series by tvb.
at last, i bought my ted baker vest at discounted price from 239... but need alteration. i was so desperate to get it even the last piece was slightly bigger, i still bought it to alter. now i am left with shoes... shall hunt for it on wed.
was watching the news and the golden globe updates... kate winslet got best actress and best supporting actress for 2 different movies??? and she almost forgot angelina jolie's name while thanking the rest of the nominees. u could see jolie's face turn sour.
this yr top student for o lvl came from st nick, 11 A1s. gosh. are the papers getting easier or the students mugging that hard or becoming smarter. 1/3 of cat high students got 9 distinction or something. lol.
anyway grey's getting kinda boring... the whole setting of the show was so depressing. meredith and christina quarreling and cold war; izzie talking to herself with her dead finance; only callie and sloan had sparks, the rest were such a bore to watch. haiz. no bloody accidents or trauma. whatever happened to the scriptwriters???
met with someone with my fyp grp. inspiring as usual... shed a different light on UniSIM and learnt a lot on doing qualitative research.
went to catch red cliff, totally rocked more than the first one. perhaps there were more fighting and less playing on guzheng, talking crap, all the "dancing" with swords.... as usual if u are the no nonsense kind, follow the history closely, you would not like the show as much cos the story plot was so twisted. i mean if u like it to be like what the history books depict, you might as well watch the drama series by tvb.
at last, i bought my ted baker vest at discounted price from 239... but need alteration. i was so desperate to get it even the last piece was slightly bigger, i still bought it to alter. now i am left with shoes... shall hunt for it on wed.
was watching the news and the golden globe updates... kate winslet got best actress and best supporting actress for 2 different movies??? and she almost forgot angelina jolie's name while thanking the rest of the nominees. u could see jolie's face turn sour.
this yr top student for o lvl came from st nick, 11 A1s. gosh. are the papers getting easier or the students mugging that hard or becoming smarter. 1/3 of cat high students got 9 distinction or something. lol.
anyway grey's getting kinda boring... the whole setting of the show was so depressing. meredith and christina quarreling and cold war; izzie talking to herself with her dead finance; only callie and sloan had sparks, the rest were such a bore to watch. haiz. no bloody accidents or trauma. whatever happened to the scriptwriters???
Sunday, January 11, 2009
..:: 594. The One With B4 Sleep Thoughts ::..
yesterday couldnt get knocked out... had to toss and turn. was having random thoughts...
was thinking through which modules that I have taken that required the least effort to study... in the end it was HP310 - positive psychology.
why?
firstly the coursework does not have group work. i just need to submit 10-page essay, 2 2-page essays and the exam was open-book. my 10-page essay took me 2 days while i cramped my last minute 2 x 2-page essay in 5 hours. what's best was last sem i had modules that require serious mugging like accounting (had to practise), another psychology module (had to memorise), strategic management (case release before exam)... and the psychology paper was before accounting... hence i used the day before my psy paper to do some internet research.
on the day of the exam, i saw the psy majors having neatly documented files on their tables, while i only have a stack of white papers (my own research and lecture notes). i flipped open the exam paper and i was pleasantly surprised that my research hit the bull's eye. however, i was also a little sad that i could have done more research to cover a few questions. i had to answer 10/15 questions and each question is worth 10 marks.
shall list the questions here since we could not bring back the question paper so those who are taking this module can take reference:
1) Do you agree that happiness equate subjective well-being?
2) Is positive affect always good?
3) Does more choices lead to life satisfaction?
4) What is optimism in the asian context?
5) What is the difference between state and trait happiness and how do they affect stress coping
6) Describe the model of wisdom (Berlin i think)
7) What is the issue Cantor is trying to highlight in her article and what is the evidence she used?
8) Does malleable or fixed self contribute to subjective well-being
9) Which pattern of achievement is better for one's subjective wellbeing? your own or your parents' choice?
10) Is it always good to have control?
12) Describe the two kinds of coping.
13) How does psychological resilience differ in culture?
14) How do others in context contribute to wellbeing?
15) Do laugh therapy create happiness?
phew... such a long list. i was "complaining" to my friend that at every tutorial i kind of felt lost cos the style of the professor is more the american way whereby students are encouraged to speak up and be interactive. issues we talked about were like "name 3 good things that happen to you in life", etc, those sharing of life experiences so sometimes it felt weird talking about those with total strangers.
i still vividly remembered that my first few tutorials were traumatizing. the prof had me to define subjective wellbeing and after i had explained, she asked me, "you are not a psychology major right?"
ouch. ya and i was the only non-psy in the class. the prof always liked to pick me and she said it brought new perspective. however, after all the doubts and thoughts i was struggling, i got A for the module. so i was super happy with the amount of effort i put in and what some of my sec school frenz in that course told me "wah, why you choose this module? this prof is well-known for chim stuff and even psy major try to avoid this module"...
next issue was rather simple. i was thinking whether i should still stay in hall. esp since i would be only staying for 2 out of 7 days. doesnt make economical sense. i could save up to about 900 bucks which i think i can use for my grad trip even though i would be reimburse but reimbursement would only come in June which would be too late. haiz.
any advice?
yesterday couldnt get knocked out... had to toss and turn. was having random thoughts...
was thinking through which modules that I have taken that required the least effort to study... in the end it was HP310 - positive psychology.
why?
firstly the coursework does not have group work. i just need to submit 10-page essay, 2 2-page essays and the exam was open-book. my 10-page essay took me 2 days while i cramped my last minute 2 x 2-page essay in 5 hours. what's best was last sem i had modules that require serious mugging like accounting (had to practise), another psychology module (had to memorise), strategic management (case release before exam)... and the psychology paper was before accounting... hence i used the day before my psy paper to do some internet research.
on the day of the exam, i saw the psy majors having neatly documented files on their tables, while i only have a stack of white papers (my own research and lecture notes). i flipped open the exam paper and i was pleasantly surprised that my research hit the bull's eye. however, i was also a little sad that i could have done more research to cover a few questions. i had to answer 10/15 questions and each question is worth 10 marks.
shall list the questions here since we could not bring back the question paper so those who are taking this module can take reference:
1) Do you agree that happiness equate subjective well-being?
2) Is positive affect always good?
3) Does more choices lead to life satisfaction?
4) What is optimism in the asian context?
5) What is the difference between state and trait happiness and how do they affect stress coping
6) Describe the model of wisdom (Berlin i think)
7) What is the issue Cantor is trying to highlight in her article and what is the evidence she used?
8) Does malleable or fixed self contribute to subjective well-being
9) Which pattern of achievement is better for one's subjective wellbeing? your own or your parents' choice?
10) Is it always good to have control?
12) Describe the two kinds of coping.
13) How does psychological resilience differ in culture?
14) How do others in context contribute to wellbeing?
15) Do laugh therapy create happiness?
phew... such a long list. i was "complaining" to my friend that at every tutorial i kind of felt lost cos the style of the professor is more the american way whereby students are encouraged to speak up and be interactive. issues we talked about were like "name 3 good things that happen to you in life", etc, those sharing of life experiences so sometimes it felt weird talking about those with total strangers.
i still vividly remembered that my first few tutorials were traumatizing. the prof had me to define subjective wellbeing and after i had explained, she asked me, "you are not a psychology major right?"
ouch. ya and i was the only non-psy in the class. the prof always liked to pick me and she said it brought new perspective. however, after all the doubts and thoughts i was struggling, i got A for the module. so i was super happy with the amount of effort i put in and what some of my sec school frenz in that course told me "wah, why you choose this module? this prof is well-known for chim stuff and even psy major try to avoid this module"...
next issue was rather simple. i was thinking whether i should still stay in hall. esp since i would be only staying for 2 out of 7 days. doesnt make economical sense. i could save up to about 900 bucks which i think i can use for my grad trip even though i would be reimburse but reimbursement would only come in June which would be too late. haiz.
any advice?
..:: 593. The One With Shopping ::..
today shopping was great. spent the whole evening and night at taka. bought a shirt and pant from john curtis and brentwood plus a set of boxer bermudas. spent about 130+ today...
but i am still hunting for a vest. saw one from ted baker and armani exchange. gonna see which one is cheaper but at least 100+ after discount. haiz.
i still need loafers, maybe getting from pedro or aldo...
gosh, still worried for one of my modules that i still have not gotten... and another module where i have no group...
so much drama for my last sem. haiz...
today shopping was great. spent the whole evening and night at taka. bought a shirt and pant from john curtis and brentwood plus a set of boxer bermudas. spent about 130+ today...
but i am still hunting for a vest. saw one from ted baker and armani exchange. gonna see which one is cheaper but at least 100+ after discount. haiz.
i still need loafers, maybe getting from pedro or aldo...
gosh, still worried for one of my modules that i still have not gotten... and another module where i have no group...
so much drama for my last sem. haiz...
Thursday, January 08, 2009
..:: 592. The One With Club Hop ::..
yest mambo was sucky. dun understand why mambo can be so popular. everybody watching those self-claimed mambo king wannabes (MKW) standing on the platform and learning their steps like some kind of sign language. worse, it felt like a cult.
music was kinda trashy at the start, mix of hip hop. just couldnt get high. and those MKW stood at the platform looking disinterested, yawning, smsing whenever it is not their genre. such a turn off. dancing should be a form of self expression, do whatever you like and make it your own style.
then we went over to o bar. music was so much better. i think i will give up phuture or zouk soon. phuture actually has quota for number of girls. O_O girls are not allowed, not even to buy ticket to go into phuture. so you have a lot of guys and dwindling girls as they leave the club. wow how nice.
anyway paid 30 bucks to go o-bar for 1 hour plus lol. but it was worth it. some guy came to pick up our girls which was quite an amusing sight. then we went back to phuture again around 3am to claim our drinks. then only the music got better.
we clubbed till they close at about 5am. had drinks and supper at the nearby coffeeshop where i bumped into my secondary sch mates and the juniors.
oh about the little nyonya finale, i think only aunties like to have happily-ever-after ending... chen xi and yue niang get together... yawnz. watched too much tvb shows. everything turned out so well - unrealistic. then no need scriptwriters, everything end it well so expected. come on.
haha maybe its them trying to project themselves... hoping to find someone who loves them as much after going through so much suffering...
yest mambo was sucky. dun understand why mambo can be so popular. everybody watching those self-claimed mambo king wannabes (MKW) standing on the platform and learning their steps like some kind of sign language. worse, it felt like a cult.
music was kinda trashy at the start, mix of hip hop. just couldnt get high. and those MKW stood at the platform looking disinterested, yawning, smsing whenever it is not their genre. such a turn off. dancing should be a form of self expression, do whatever you like and make it your own style.
then we went over to o bar. music was so much better. i think i will give up phuture or zouk soon. phuture actually has quota for number of girls. O_O girls are not allowed, not even to buy ticket to go into phuture. so you have a lot of guys and dwindling girls as they leave the club. wow how nice.
anyway paid 30 bucks to go o-bar for 1 hour plus lol. but it was worth it. some guy came to pick up our girls which was quite an amusing sight. then we went back to phuture again around 3am to claim our drinks. then only the music got better.
we clubbed till they close at about 5am. had drinks and supper at the nearby coffeeshop where i bumped into my secondary sch mates and the juniors.
oh about the little nyonya finale, i think only aunties like to have happily-ever-after ending... chen xi and yue niang get together... yawnz. watched too much tvb shows. everything turned out so well - unrealistic. then no need scriptwriters, everything end it well so expected. come on.
haha maybe its them trying to project themselves... hoping to find someone who loves them as much after going through so much suffering...
Tuesday, January 06, 2009
..:: 591. The One With First Day of Sch ::..
was late for first day of school. the exchange students in my class were so active in answering whatever the prof asked. must step up my game man, if not class participation sure "gone case".
had back to back classes from supposedly 830am to 430pm. during my hr research class we had to play this game which was to build a structure to protect the egg when it is dropped from a certain height. she wanted the egg to drop from 6 feet high. O_O
i suggested to her that maybe we should drop it at waist level so that aiming would not be an issue and that the experiment would really see whether our structures are sound and effective. in the end, she still wanted 6 feet high.
then as expected, no group had their egg intact. then with her extra egg (sounds wrong), she wanted to drop it at waist level instead to see if our structure were good. but the egg was broken at the second try.
now i'll never know whether our structure is good...
after class, was at town exploring. one vest from ted baker caught my eye. 229 bucks before 30% discount. i'm so going to get it once my pay comes in =)
then saw the pillow section having sales. didnt know that pillows had certain % down, certain % feathers. of cos the more down the better the pillow. i came across one 100% down made from hungary, it costs 237 bucks. but its the kind where your head just sinks in and you can immediately doze off and when you are awake, it goes back into its normal shape. but it wont be on my shopping list that soon.
i am also gunning for a psp, was thinking whether to get the ruby red for the attention or the metallic brown for the style. lol.
still got new year clothes to buy. haiz.
dinner had crayfish laksa at island cafe at TANGS. 16+ bucks for one. lol. more expensive laksa i have ever eaten.
was late for first day of school. the exchange students in my class were so active in answering whatever the prof asked. must step up my game man, if not class participation sure "gone case".
had back to back classes from supposedly 830am to 430pm. during my hr research class we had to play this game which was to build a structure to protect the egg when it is dropped from a certain height. she wanted the egg to drop from 6 feet high. O_O
i suggested to her that maybe we should drop it at waist level so that aiming would not be an issue and that the experiment would really see whether our structures are sound and effective. in the end, she still wanted 6 feet high.
then as expected, no group had their egg intact. then with her extra egg (sounds wrong), she wanted to drop it at waist level instead to see if our structure were good. but the egg was broken at the second try.
now i'll never know whether our structure is good...
after class, was at town exploring. one vest from ted baker caught my eye. 229 bucks before 30% discount. i'm so going to get it once my pay comes in =)
then saw the pillow section having sales. didnt know that pillows had certain % down, certain % feathers. of cos the more down the better the pillow. i came across one 100% down made from hungary, it costs 237 bucks. but its the kind where your head just sinks in and you can immediately doze off and when you are awake, it goes back into its normal shape. but it wont be on my shopping list that soon.
i am also gunning for a psp, was thinking whether to get the ruby red for the attention or the metallic brown for the style. lol.
still got new year clothes to buy. haiz.
dinner had crayfish laksa at island cafe at TANGS. 16+ bucks for one. lol. more expensive laksa i have ever eaten.
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
..:: 590. The One With Year-End Summex ::..
So much have happened in the month of dec and i did not have time to update my blog. shall do a fast recollection.
30Nov - 5Dec
went to vietnam with my Nanyang Business School mates. signed up the trip knowing only 2 people in the group. i had so much fun that was beyond words. the morning parts where we spent visiting companies were fulfilling and the hanging out at night just topped the whole trip. the last night at ho chi minh city was the ultimate. we played quite a few games, getting to know each other really well. i'm glad i stayed up till 4am and went crazy, just that booze was missing!
mui ne was alright i guess, i felt the company and cam-whoring were more important than the places we visited. probably it was the hot weather and the only thing to see was the sand dunes. the exciting episode of the stolen slippers and the ultimate sabo where i had to dance on the bus for a forfeit during a game which led to my downfall.
when we reached the vietnam national university for a cultural exchange, the students there prepared a lot of performances for us while we had none. so i was at that instance, the representative for our school for a performance. my mind went blank when i heard my name. lucky they had the song sexyback by justin timberlake, if not i would be dancing to some folk songs.
i guess the dance clip can be found in youtube. thanks to steph leong. -_-. i felt like an animal in the zoo, while i was performing, all the cameras were recording and flashing... i think i hadnt done hip hop for very long, once i got down on the floor to do floor works, i couldnt get up in time so i had to dance on the floor for a while. but hey, all of them didnt spot it =)
next event i guess would be my VI Camp
i must say i always look forward to VI Camp. Firstly, it was the time i get to interact with youths and i am excited to share my experiences and see how i can help in developing their leadership.
the next great thing was that we had a great team. small but mighty, everyone had something to offer. i was impressed by the junior mentors, i missed those times where you get close to the trainees and you get to hang out and know them better. but when you are asst chief trainer, you will feel that gap.
oh... talking about being mentors, i am kinda excited cos i am in for the next batch again! but this time, the level has just gone up. AYO becomes the mentors. LOL. I am back to my mentoring days.
seeing what the trainees went through reminded me of the old days. nothing is new, the sleep deprivation that resulted from poor time management, the injury-prone exercises that were meant to stretch you mentally and physically. the old ones will always tell you that they had them worse. i was quite shocked to see 23 trainees had to struggle to carry 1 casualty. that made me reflect on the issue of safety vs reality training. during our time we had to carry our bags and at the same time evacuate casualties, there was no such thing as 'bag party'. times had changed. i still remember those days, we screamed our lungs out pushing one another. yelling (in good will) to push and encourage one another. even doing cheers to get our timing in sync to carry the casualties.
all in all, i think the camp went really well. the pace started slow and unpleasant but picked up when we decided to change our strategy. it was heartening to receive feedback from trainees so that we can improve our conduct of the programme. sadly, there were some who were not interested to give any comment. Given the benefit of doubt, i believe they had more important things to do like work and study.
i was thought to be sarcastic at times. well, i dont deny it. i could have tell some of them straight in the face, change this and that. in reality and in the working life, you can be the one who dont use them (sarcasm and criticism) but you can never avoid them. i have learnt to go around them in the hard way. when i say something, i always try to make it a point to deal with the matter rather than the person.
there was of course a lot of drama going on, but i feel that we should not take things too personally. there are many times where you are too angry that you let the emotions do all the talking or writing. that is when things just get worse. communication - talking things over calmly really helps. Putting across your message tactfully in writing or speech is equally important.
was reading through some of the blogs and i realised there were so much fun going on behind the scenes. mizael and i started this noose trend and seemed like it has created some stir.
blogging is a personal thing. you can write whatever you want in an open diary knowing that a lot of people will read. however, i do advocate blogging responsibly. yes, you can write to spite or diss someone but with some level of control, decency and maturity. especially if you are going 21, becoming an officer or what not, what you write reflects on you.
ha. so whats the point of blogging if you cant be yourself huh? i guess those password protected entries would come in handy.
VI Retreat
this year was my first time attending the retreat. had a great time with my batch mates and i was happy to see all of the trainees passing out and enjoying themselves. i think that is one of the most important part of being a VI, the friendships you made. I just enjoyed the times we sit down and play games with the juniors, getting to know them and hope we can exchange advice. I was quite amazed by my batch mates and some of the juniors who still managed to win the captain ball game without sleep the night before. we totally rocked. ha.
Results
on the sun night, i had to do fyp conference on the phone. my other half of my mind was thinking about the results that were going to be released at the stroke of midnight. all was well =) couple of As and Bs which i was happy with given the tremendous workload. Looking forward to my last semester with all my favourite modules.
happy for my friend who recently got a job =) now a civil servant like myself.
i will definitely miss schooling and my friends. i also cant wait to start work, earning my first official pay check. meanwhile i still wish to travel to bangkok and then india for my graduation trip.
every year it is compulsory to have new year resolution right?
-Get 2nd upper honours
-Get back IPPT (G)
-More involved in Red Cross
-Go for lasik
-Get PSP (deep red)
-Travel to Bangkok and India
So much have happened in the month of dec and i did not have time to update my blog. shall do a fast recollection.
30Nov - 5Dec
went to vietnam with my Nanyang Business School mates. signed up the trip knowing only 2 people in the group. i had so much fun that was beyond words. the morning parts where we spent visiting companies were fulfilling and the hanging out at night just topped the whole trip. the last night at ho chi minh city was the ultimate. we played quite a few games, getting to know each other really well. i'm glad i stayed up till 4am and went crazy, just that booze was missing!
mui ne was alright i guess, i felt the company and cam-whoring were more important than the places we visited. probably it was the hot weather and the only thing to see was the sand dunes. the exciting episode of the stolen slippers and the ultimate sabo where i had to dance on the bus for a forfeit during a game which led to my downfall.
when we reached the vietnam national university for a cultural exchange, the students there prepared a lot of performances for us while we had none. so i was at that instance, the representative for our school for a performance. my mind went blank when i heard my name. lucky they had the song sexyback by justin timberlake, if not i would be dancing to some folk songs.
i guess the dance clip can be found in youtube. thanks to steph leong. -_-. i felt like an animal in the zoo, while i was performing, all the cameras were recording and flashing... i think i hadnt done hip hop for very long, once i got down on the floor to do floor works, i couldnt get up in time so i had to dance on the floor for a while. but hey, all of them didnt spot it =)
next event i guess would be my VI Camp
i must say i always look forward to VI Camp. Firstly, it was the time i get to interact with youths and i am excited to share my experiences and see how i can help in developing their leadership.
the next great thing was that we had a great team. small but mighty, everyone had something to offer. i was impressed by the junior mentors, i missed those times where you get close to the trainees and you get to hang out and know them better. but when you are asst chief trainer, you will feel that gap.
oh... talking about being mentors, i am kinda excited cos i am in for the next batch again! but this time, the level has just gone up. AYO becomes the mentors. LOL. I am back to my mentoring days.
seeing what the trainees went through reminded me of the old days. nothing is new, the sleep deprivation that resulted from poor time management, the injury-prone exercises that were meant to stretch you mentally and physically. the old ones will always tell you that they had them worse. i was quite shocked to see 23 trainees had to struggle to carry 1 casualty. that made me reflect on the issue of safety vs reality training. during our time we had to carry our bags and at the same time evacuate casualties, there was no such thing as 'bag party'. times had changed. i still remember those days, we screamed our lungs out pushing one another. yelling (in good will) to push and encourage one another. even doing cheers to get our timing in sync to carry the casualties.
all in all, i think the camp went really well. the pace started slow and unpleasant but picked up when we decided to change our strategy. it was heartening to receive feedback from trainees so that we can improve our conduct of the programme. sadly, there were some who were not interested to give any comment. Given the benefit of doubt, i believe they had more important things to do like work and study.
i was thought to be sarcastic at times. well, i dont deny it. i could have tell some of them straight in the face, change this and that. in reality and in the working life, you can be the one who dont use them (sarcasm and criticism) but you can never avoid them. i have learnt to go around them in the hard way. when i say something, i always try to make it a point to deal with the matter rather than the person.
there was of course a lot of drama going on, but i feel that we should not take things too personally. there are many times where you are too angry that you let the emotions do all the talking or writing. that is when things just get worse. communication - talking things over calmly really helps. Putting across your message tactfully in writing or speech is equally important.
was reading through some of the blogs and i realised there were so much fun going on behind the scenes. mizael and i started this noose trend and seemed like it has created some stir.
blogging is a personal thing. you can write whatever you want in an open diary knowing that a lot of people will read. however, i do advocate blogging responsibly. yes, you can write to spite or diss someone but with some level of control, decency and maturity. especially if you are going 21, becoming an officer or what not, what you write reflects on you.
ha. so whats the point of blogging if you cant be yourself huh? i guess those password protected entries would come in handy.
VI Retreat
this year was my first time attending the retreat. had a great time with my batch mates and i was happy to see all of the trainees passing out and enjoying themselves. i think that is one of the most important part of being a VI, the friendships you made. I just enjoyed the times we sit down and play games with the juniors, getting to know them and hope we can exchange advice. I was quite amazed by my batch mates and some of the juniors who still managed to win the captain ball game without sleep the night before. we totally rocked. ha.
Results
on the sun night, i had to do fyp conference on the phone. my other half of my mind was thinking about the results that were going to be released at the stroke of midnight. all was well =) couple of As and Bs which i was happy with given the tremendous workload. Looking forward to my last semester with all my favourite modules.
happy for my friend who recently got a job =) now a civil servant like myself.
i will definitely miss schooling and my friends. i also cant wait to start work, earning my first official pay check. meanwhile i still wish to travel to bangkok and then india for my graduation trip.
every year it is compulsory to have new year resolution right?
-Get 2nd upper honours
-Get back IPPT (G)
-More involved in Red Cross
-Go for lasik
-Get PSP (deep red)
-Travel to Bangkok and India
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