a Geek's Perspective

a Live Changing Two Years

2012-10-05T07:49:00.002+08:00

It's been two years since my last blog entry.

I always wanted this blog to be like a journal into my life but it has not been very well-organised.
Although as I spend sometime reading back the entries, it did triggered some pleasant memories of years ago.

Well, two years has been a long time. Since 2010, quite a fair bit has changed. Perhaps a fair bit is an understatement, and live changing is more appropriate.

In 2010, I proposed to my girlfriend in Shanghai at the World Expo 2010. We made it to the news too. I started a new appointment in the Force, where a new job scope and experience awaits. I learned new skillsets and also had thankful opportunities to visit the United States and London through work.

In 2011, we got married and for our honeymoon, we took the chance to visit Spain and Italy, where I could use little smatterings of Spanish to converse. I started looking for other career opportunities but having a 3 months notice was difficult. I tried applying for business school, did pretty well on my GMAT score, but failed to make the cut for the interview. I will probably talk about that sometime later. I started visiting the gym again with Gabriel. We trained for a good 10 months, before stopping again.

In 2012, we learned to live together and marriage is a lifelong journey as we learn new things about each other. I am thankful that we are similar and that we can tolerate each other quirks, most of the time. I quit my job with the Air Force in pursuit of other interests. The work there had became uninspiring for me and I needed to rejuvenate myself.

And that brings us to October.

What will the future bring? Perhaps the state of joblessness draws out the mid life crisis emotions but despite that, I feel that the last couple of months has been a good break for me to think about what I really want to do and making the best use of the opportunities that had been presented. I am thankful for the options that appeared and I hope that in a couple of years time, life would be even more exciting.

unleash The Beast

2010-09-04T07:11:00.000+08:00

I bought my CPU, the AMD Phenom II X2 550, a dual core processor last year based on the multiple reviews that it could be unlocked to a quad core. To simplify things, the Phenom II X2 (dual core) is nothing more than a Phenom II X4 (quad core) with two cores disabled. Originally these cores were disabled because of low yields, but over time yields on quad-core Phenom IIs should be high enough to negate the need for a Phenom II X2. There in lies the simplicity of this unlock. However, when I first got my motherboard and processor, it didn't work and I was disheartened. Yet, it was definitely powerful enough to support / run whatever I had to throw at it and I was happy.

Just last night, I was checking out the price of a new quad core as I was looking at the pricelists to set up a new computer for my cousin. I am not sure why, but was suddenly tempted to try the unlocking again. This morning, I downloaded a new bios, played around with the settings and lo and behold :) it was done! I got my 4 processors working and everything else is working great.

outward Bound To Hanoi

2010-08-19T17:46:00.000+08:00

It has been a very interesting year, to say the least. It is only August but suddenly am already feeling rather tired, and looking back, indeed many reasons to feel as such.

The year had first started with a road trip to Melaka, exploring the various back alleys and getting to visit the planetarium. And before it seems that we could catch our breath, we were off to see the cherry blossoms in Japan. Every trip was significant, even the work ones to France and Florida in quick succession followed by the impromptu yet grand shanghai proposal. And now, I am once again at the airport, albeit the budget one, and waiting for my delayed flight to set off.

This time, the destination is sunny Hanoi. I guess I shall just focus on relaxing and not walk around too much, but somehow, a review of my draft itinerary shows it to be rather packed already... Zzz. Another 1 and 1/2 hr before my flight. Should I even bother visiting the shops inside the budget transit area??

the 1 Week in Florida

2010-06-28T18:59:00.001+08:00

After a grueling 30 hours, of which 21 hours flying time and 9 hrs transit, I made it! I am in Orlando, Florida. It’s summer now so the weather is exactly like back home. At least there’s aircon in the room :) This is going to be a short trip, 4 days to be exact and no weekend to explore as well, probably even less free time than the last one I went. Oh well, at least it is a different place and shall make the most out of it.

Had a call from my boss when I landed in Orlando, called me a couple of times so I thought it was urgent. Wrong assumption. Wasted 2 minutes of roaming charges as he called me to ask for a phone number. Argh! I am not a telephone directory. Isn’t there suppose to be a different ringtone when one is overseas?

Anyway, seems that one advantage of travelling this time of the year is the summer sales, coupled with their big sale for the Independence Day weekend. Should be quite a fruitful haul :) This only seems to be the big aim of the travelling group and anyway, not much time to visit the touristy spots either.

a Long (Awaited?) Update

2010-06-26T23:53:00.001+08:00

I have not blogged for awhile. Now is an appropriate time to start again as at least it provides an alternative means of communication with Jiali now that she will be working in Shanghai over the next couple of months. Anyway, life has changed quite a fair bit since the last time I blogged. I have been fortunate to travel quite a fair bit (be it for work or leisure) and have now increased the number of places I have visited this year. Looking ahead across the short term horizon, more opportunities to come as Florida and Vietnam awaits.

I have just came back from France for a work trip. It was indeed an eye opener as this was the first trip I actually had to prepare on my own as I was the assigned staff officer. Hence, from getting the trip approval to settling the funds, it was a brand new experience from me and indeed, I have grown from it.

Oh well.. going to be a long day ahead.. from 5am tmr, the next 30 hours will be spent living in aeroplanes and airports. sheesh…

time To Buck Up!

2010-03-26T21:31:00.003+08:00

when one door closes.. another opens...

we are often so preoccupied with the lost of some opportunities that we tend to miss the new opportunities present to us. I have been lucky at my career. It has not been the smoothest of paths but I am happy with what chances and opportunities it has given me thus far. Its going to be a challenging year ahead.. time to work hard!

Anyway, I am seriously getting fatter. Weighing in at about 65 kg now, and it is definitely not muscle mass gained. Damn. Haha...

So.. its time to train. And this is my geeky setup for jogging.
Bluetooth earphones linked up with a GPS phone that measures the distance + calories burnt of my run :) Everything connects easily and it just works (though some might say the initial setup is a PITA). Actually, knowing how far you run and how fast you run is a great motivator.

closing Of Another Chapter

2009-11-26T21:24:00.004+08:00

Today marks the end of my Indian story. As I prepare to leave this place, the feeling is that of happiness. I can't wait to go home. When the topic of India was mentioned previously, some described it as a place of scenery, of lush greenery and magnificent sights, others described it as the city slums, of polluted air and dirt-stained buildings and a city of over-population coupled with proverty. Yet, the India that I have seen in the last 3 weeks have been confined to the base only. While that may be so, I at least have an insight into their pscyhe and the interesting quriks that they may have, thanks to the many that I have interacted with over the past 3 weeks. The Indians are an intelligent lot. Though some of their work practices leave much to be desired, they still manage to get things done.

For myself, it has been a meaningful experience and I have learnt much.

the Last Weekend

2009-11-22T12:17:00.003+08:00

It’s been 19 days here and counting. We were supposed to return on the coming Tuesday but due to a maintenance problem on Friday, our stay in India have been extended by one more day. I am keeping my fingers crossed for the rest of the days ahead and hoping that the remainder goes as planned.

I miss home. These 3 weeks have gone by quickly and while it has been fun (somewhat) and a good learning experience, the yearning for home and the comforts it provide has steadily increased. I have and will always be a very homely person. While the stay here is somewhat like a confinement, I am generally ok with just staying in over the weekends and entertaining myself with shows or just the internet, so its not really about being bored. It has been lonely.

india! Surviving...

2009-11-07T08:39:00.000+08:00

Finally! First weekend in India... the days here have been long so far, but then there's nothing much to look forward to after work either. Shall make the most of my remaining 2 weeks here!

staying Fit

2009-09-06T22:12:00.008+08:00

I am all of a sudden motivated once again to start exercising and whipping my body into shape once more. This feeling has came and gone for quite a few times in my life and I have to admit that each moment of burst it has at least forced me to keep in relatively decent shape which is a good thing. I have all too often let myself lose to the laziness. Well, how long will this new found momentum be able to carry itself? I doubt it will last more than a week or two to be honest, what with work getting in the way and all. I can't blame it on anything other than myself considering that there's a gym in the office but I hardly use it, more keen to head home instead of spending precious time there. Perhaps its a mentality that I should be changing. Let's see how the next few weeks take me.

móvil y Móviles

2009-07-12T09:51:00.001+08:00

The girlfriend lost her phone couple of weeks ago which resulted in a mad scramble around town to get a new sim card. It turned out more painful than I initially imagined. We were first at Anchorpoint when the loss was discovered. By then, the perpetuator had already turned off the phone. We could only deactivate it and went to get a new sim. We learned a lesson that only Hello! Shops can replace lost sim card, which brought us from Vivo to West Mall. Luckily, there wasn’t much of a queue at West Mall unlike the iPhone 3GS madness at Comcentre.

I recontracted my contract for the 32gb iPhone 3GS, and subsequently sold it, which brought about the following calculation.

Based on current iOne (CIS) plan of $23.65 per mth (VAS included), the optimum contract was to go for the iFlexi as after factoring in the monthly price differences, I gain $400+ along with an extra 500mb data plan.

Name	Price Plan	VAS	Phone	Difference	Profit
iOne w data	$20.97	$19.60	$748.00	$405.96	$246.04
iOne (non-CIS)	$25.68	$4.68	$848.00	$161.07	$390.93
iFlexi	$35.10	$4.68	$578.00	$387.12	$434.88

For my dad’s case however, it wasn’t so simple. Currently the classic plan is only $14.98 per month due to CIS rates. So instead of signing up for the data plan, I should forego the CIS rate and switch to the standard Classic plan for my dad as there might be loyalty discounts subsequently.

Name	Price Plan	VAS	Phone	Difference	Profit
Classic (non-CIS)	$29.96	$0.00	$728.00	$359.52	$312.48
iOne (non-CIS)	$25.68	$4.68	$848.00	$369.15	$182.85
iFlexi	$35.10	$4.68	$578.00	$595.20	$226.80
Classic (CIS) w data (24 mths)	$14.98	$16.92	$728.00	$406.08	$265.92

There’s one more option though, which I need to verify. There’s an option for a 12 mth broadband VAS and if that is allowed, then the price difference would be much less.

Classic (CIS) w data (12 mths)

$14.98

$16.92

$728.00

$203.04

$468.96

buen Fin de Semana

2009-06-21T23:24:00.001+08:00

What a quick week it has been... Spanish lesson this week was quite tough with part of the reason being not prepared with the homework. Had loads of vocabulary shoved to us this week but with only a weekly revision, it's going to be a challenge to remember all of them.

Shall try to devote at least 30 minutes a day to focus on Spanish revolution else I'm never going to progress much faster.

coaching Session

2009-06-16T22:12:00.001+08:00

My boss brought up a good point today. If I’m indeed due to move, I really should make full use of my time in my current position to learn as much as possible as I will never have this opportunity again. It also continued to be a somewhat grooming session, with him giving pointers on how to handle my future appointment. We talked about how to handle your bosses, the expectations of how to be a good staff writer, what are the important things to focus on, and how working harder at the onset can result in less work in the future. It was indeed a very useful discussion throughout.

Hmm… not sure how come he suddenly spoke to me with regards to this though, as I should not be due to move so soon. Perhaps some changes have happened recently. Anyway, back to the first pointer, what else should I concentrate on learning? I have definitely worked less hard this year, so this talk with my boss was rather apt for myself to refocus. Sigh.. while the future posting might result in more regular hours, I must admit that life here has stabilised and while we need to put out certain fires from time to time, it is still quite fun to work here, especially with the easy access / people around to support you.

so Life’s Back to Normal

2009-06-14T22:44:00.001+08:00

I have collected my car already... At least life has re-acquired some form of normalcy once again which is a relief, and that explains the blog title. The car repair was done quite well, as they had to change the entire door, also, the damaged rear area was cut out and replaced too. Total cost hovered within the region of around $4,000 plus and that will now be taken up with the other insurance, subject to the success of the 3rd party claim.

Birthday was great, and I fully made use of my birthday off. Started a tad early with a late night gaming session with JC friends at Katong, having a blast killing undead zombies and vice versa. The actual day wax spent with dear at the zoo which was fun, marred slightly by working calls in the middle which ended a little hot tempered. Anyway, putting aside work, the zoo might not have changed much but it has revamped itself with new shows, making it more interesting. It was a tiring day and when we left the zoo, we were physically drained and just nua-ed at bukit timah sixth avenue.

Dinner was at Brazil Churrascaria. An overly meat indulgent meal specially chosen for me, it was just the place for a meat feast. Many various cuts / styles of meat to try and for the adventurous, chicken hearts and livers. To be honest, the normal style of meats were more than enough for me and it admittedly was a little meat excessive. We enjoyed ourselves, but probably not going to re-visit the place any time soon.

wham! Bam!

2009-06-02T23:12:00.000+08:00

Memories of cruising down a small lane and just one more turn before I actually reach home when all of a sudden, wham! One loud sickening crunch filling my ears and a gloomy feeling started to settle in. It was a school bus and it had rammed into my side. Sheesh…

Anyway, it was thankful that I was not hurt but the car is now stuck in a workshop awaiting repairs. If everything goes well, the claim against the bus should hopefully proceed smoothly and I will get my car back in 9 days time. It has been a bad year driving… Oh well, here’s hoping that the days ahead will improve.

a Good Break

2009-05-12T19:55:00.000+08:00

I took half a day leave today with the intention to sort out my road tax. As it turned out, I managed to sort it out even before I left office. I called up the company to check the status of my application and shortly, they were able to transfer the notice to LTA. With that completed, i was able to login and pay my road tax at my office, leaving me with a full half day free.

Spent the time catching up with my JC friends, met up with Alan and Amos at Bugis and we ended up spending a whole day here. It was the first time i checked out Iluma, before we returned to bugis junction for teatime dessert and subsequently dinner. It was fun to catch up with them and also, thankful for having secured a job in this challenging times. They had just graduated and though I might not be having the most admired of job, it at least has grant me some stability and assurance in this times. Furthermore, with the new changes, who knows how it might be in a few years time? :)

riding In The Rain

2009-05-10T11:01:00.001+08:00

It's been storming these last few days, especially during the wee hours of the morning. I had to wake up two days in a row to restore power after the crazy lightning storm we been having… sheesh, crazy weather nowadays.

Thinking that it wouldn’t rain again so soon, I went out to pay my bills and damn, it started pouring when I reached Kembangan. Waited for awhile to see if the rain would subside but the skies just grew darker and darker and decided that I might as well rush back home. It was a chilly ride back.

Anyway, something totally random… Mas Selamat got caught but before that, he was selling Ramly Burgers? Haha…

visiting Bali

2009-05-04T20:29:00.002+08:00

We had never really considered a holiday in Bali till recently when an Airasia promotion caught our eyes and before we knew it, we had secured ourselves a 4 day stay in Bali from the 28 Apr till 01 May. We got both for a very good price, accommodation at $75 per night at Novotel Benoa, and air tickets at around $75 per pax, tax inclusive. We didn't really know what to expect in Bali but gladly, it did not disappoint.
The first day started off with a mild hitch, the flight was delayed by around an hour. Luckily for us, Changi Airport had enough to keep us busy till then. Not much problems when we arrived at Denpasar Airport. It looked very dated, but it had a somewhat resort style feel to it. We hitched a cab from the Airport Taxi Stand to our hotel at around 105k RP. A guy helped us with the luggage to the taxi and he asked for a tip, which was the one and only tip I gave in Bali. After checking in, we explored the coast of Benoa, turned out that although it was presumably famous for water sports, there were hardly any going on in the late afternoon. We had a lunch at a push cart stall, of Bakso, a meatball-beehoon soup which was not too bad. Soon after, we quickly headed to Uluwatu temple to catch the sunset and Kecak dance. It was a nice view of the sunset and the dance was unique. It was a mini play telling the story of the Hindu Monkey God and it was a full house. We hitched the same taxi to Jimbaran Bay for seafood dinner on the beach. It definitely had the ambience and with great company, it made for a very enjoyable dinner! The restaurant was the typical pick your own seafood and cooked in the desired style, the difference and the fun was in having the sand at your feet, the starlit skies above and the cool ocean breeze.

The second day, we met up with our hired driver, Made Kasa, whom we paid 500k RP to bring us around for 12 hours. Our first stop was Temple Taman Ayun. Next we went to Lake Bratan which had a temple there as well. It turned out that the Balinese are very religious, and their religion of choice was Hindu as opposed to the rest of Indonesia, interesting. We stopped at a nearby market for shopping and it was quite good actually, we got some cheap food and buys. I got cheated for a pair of slippers though, bought it for 50k RP and later found it selling at a supermarket for around 30k RP only. The 50k RP was after bargaining for a period of time too, with the stallowner initially quoting 150k RP. sheesh, haha. Next, we went on to Jatiluwih Rice Terraces. It was huge, with the rice fields spreading across acres of land and looked neverending. On the way to Tanah Lot, we stopped at another temple, famous for hosting many monkeys and fruit bats. Once again, another temple, not much to say about them, and I guess one should really visit when there is a ceremony going on else it is pretty much the same. Last stop for the day was Tanah Lot. We had wanted to time it for sunset but it was pretty early. Tanah Lot is located on the coast and part of the structure was isolated away on a separate cliff. We asked the driver to stop us at Legian / Kuta for dinner and some shopping as well. We explored the streets of Kuta and it was chock full of surfers and tourists. Very different from the place we stayed with definitely a more lively buzz. Taxis were honking at us at every opportunity to see if we wanted a ride and it was quite irritating but one does learn to ignore them. We had dinner at Kopi Pot and great food here. Besides, there was free WIFI and cheers to Pfingo, as we used the opportunity to make internet calls back home.

For the 3rd day, we woke up to soak in the suns at our hotel beach area. Turned out that the water sports took place in the morning and business was good. We ended up utilizing one near our hotel, who charged us 200k RP for a 15 min jet-ski ride which we took up. With that, we explored the coasts of Benoa until the guy called us back. Our hotel had a somewhat private beach with deck chairs and towels available which made it very convenient. No worries on security as well. We lunched at a nearby restaurant before returning to the hotel for a quick nap as I was not feeling too good after the morning activities. The hotel had a free shuttle to the Nusa Dua Bali Collection, a high end shopping mall village in Nusa Dua. It was a bit too upmarket and not very interesting. Just countless shops selling Polo Ralph stuff. We did a quick exploration before hailing a cab back to Kuta for shopping and dinner. Not much stuff to buy here, mainly beach / surf-related items and we went to sit by the Kuta beach to catch the sunset. There were neverending group of people coming up to us offering beach mats, temp tattoos, ice cream etc, really quite irritating actually. We ended up watching one guy having his surfing lessons and it was pretty interesting to see how they learnt and we cheered when he finally was able to stand for sometime. Well, the next time we come Bali, we will be coming back to try out the surfing. For dinner we ate at Kafe Dulang, famous for their Soto Ayam, which was quite nice. We walked around abit more and bought tidbits to bring back to Singapore. We ended up at Ocean Beach Club for drinks before heading back to the hotel. I can’t exactly remember what drink it was but the so-called drink of the century, some martini concoction was terrible!

The final day saw us crawling out of bed early at around 5:30am to catch the sunrise. It was fun! From seeing the gentle glow as the sun creeps up to the brilliant hue that it cast on the sky. We continued to laze by the beach and the pool till around 9 before heading back to our room to prepare to check out. Gosh, before we knew it, we were back in Denpasar and awaiting for our flight back to Singapore, which guess what, was delayed by an hour as well. Haha…

of Feeling Insignificant

2009-05-04T10:15:00.001+08:00

The world revolves and goes on, and our little lifes mean zilch. So what is it that matters for us?

It has been a happening few months,the global financial crisis hit the world badly in late 2008 and the world has not really recovered since. Stock prices have plummeted, banks are in trouble and many more bad news to come I suspect. Recently, the poor pig got implicated as well with the H1N1 flu virus making its rounds in Mexico and America, and have started threatening to hit our regions as well. The frenzy that has been stirred is a little over excessive, considering that the virus is actually not that potent compared to say the avian flu.

Yet, bad times do mean for gems and opportunities to seize but it really is all about finding the right one. A right investment, a right purchase could make all the difference in the next few years or even decades. Hence, is there any purpose in working hard? Sense of achievement? Recognition? What is it about excelling in one's career besides the monetary rewards (which may not be much, I might add)? The importance of pride cannot be denied and to a certain extent, it matters to me, but when weighed in accordance with the effort needed, it doesn't make much sense. Guess I can't help sounding a little demoralised, but I will still continue to work hard, just that will be a bit more laid back when it comes to things. End of the day, its just work! :)

good Deal

2009-04-16T02:14:00.001+08:00

This came in the mail today, in an unassuming looking envelope.

I got it from eBay, won an auction for a 16GB SDHC Class 6 card for USD $14.06. Cheap! Comparatively, Singapore prices were around SGD$25 for an 8GB equivalent card. It is however not branded and no warranty coverage, but don’t think such memory cards can spoil that easily. Anyway, the SD Card is going into my Netbook and staying there. I have been shopping for quite a few things online recently, and still waiting for 2 more big packages from Dealextreme and Focalprice to come.. can’t wait!

home Sweet Home

2009-03-31T05:33:00.000+08:00

We went for dinner at Kim Choo’s Kitchen, a peranakan place at Katong. The very local cuisine was meant to re-introduce my tastebuds back to food here after a week of being overseas. It was our first time there, and it looks pretty authentic, with the traditional Nyonya decor and what look like antiques there.

la comida es deliciosa (the food is delicious)… although it was a tad saltish.

We had stewed pork, chicken buah kelak, assam pedas and all relatively big portions for 2. The assam pedas reminded me of the one we had at Changi Shore restaurant, but for a fraction of the cost. I shall attempt to bring my grandma here for dinner soon. Also, there’s no GST or service charge, so that’s a good 17% discount already. Hmm… shall try to bring my grandma here for dinner soon. Anyway, need to find an alternative for parking, my usual place beside Katong Mall has raised its rate and was annoyed to see that they don’t even have any grace period. zzz…

I have been up since 1am. Gah, I slept from ard 1030 till 1 so I did get some rest but I can’t seem to sleep back. I am starting to feel sleepy now but I am suppose to go to work, sheesh. :(

sumimasen, I’m coming home!

2009-03-30T11:36:00.001+08:00

I am currently onboard the flight back to Singapore, its been a long journey back and really, can’t wait to be home. It was a good trip, but somehow, not as good as I expected, guess I was hoping it to be more like a holiday but we didn’t sightsee much. It was a nice break from work still, not needing to think about the daily niggling affairs, but still, I have my own work left undone which I desperately need to follow up when I return to office. Ah well… end of the day, when travelling with your boss, it is not as relaxed as I hope / want it to be.

Anyway, Chicago Airport is a mess, the directions are bad and we ended up running around trying to find the check-in counter for ANA, and we move back and forth in the terminal trying to find our way.. sheesh lol, 3 clowns running abt in the terminal as we didnt had much time. It was coupled with the fact that even the Airport staff had no clue where was the ANA counter, and some confused it with JAL, and ended up giving us conflicting directions. Well, it all ended well and we still managed to check out the lounges both at Chicago and Narita. It definitely is fun to be awarded Gold membership for frequent fliers, milking the priority queues for both the security and boarding.

4 hours more to touchdown. ANA flight thus far have been great, except for a minor glitch for the inflight entertainment system resulting in me having the time to type this. Heh… anyway, seems that the service have recovered and time for me to catch my fix of 24, onto episode 12 now.

living In St Louis

2009-03-26T19:37:00.001+08:00

It’s been pretty boring thus far. Haha.. other than eat / shop, we have not really done much else. Sales at Osage Factory Outlet Village were pretty good and I got quite a number of items there, but it was an almost 3 hrs drive away and that sucks. Other than that, the usual malls here are pretty boring, been to St Louis Galleria and Mills thus far. Was thinking whether should make a trip down to see the Arch but everybody here have nothing positive to say about it so will probably not go check it out.

I also happen to be sleeping very early and waking up EARLIER as the days pass, which is weird. This is some crazy sleeping timing. Oh well.. its time to go home soon :). Shall miss this relax pace lifestyle…

once Again, Off to America

2009-03-22T03:15:00.001+08:00

Singapore time now is 5:40pm, its been 18 hrs since I left Singapore and I am still stuck on the plane. I also happened to be very bored. Haha… slept enough though so ain’t really that tired. This time around, happened to be my first experience with ANA and its pretty good, no complains about the food and service, the inflight entertainment has some of the newer shows but nothing really caught my fancy, ended up completing 2 shows, “Vicky, Christina and Barcelona” and “Suspect X”, recommended by Andy, the Galileo TV Series movie. I also watched part of “Seven Pounds” and that was useful in lulling me to sleep.

Thanks to travelling with 2 Krisflyer Gold members, I enjoyed quite a fair bit of the privileges, the shorter check-in or boarding queues, the usage of the lounge etc. We spent the 3 hrs transit time at the ANA Lounge in Narita, free food, drinks. There was a noodle bar so tried some tempura soba, quite decent and also took one melon-pan, however, think anime made it look much nicer.

Another 8 hrs more before I can reach my hotel. I am missing home already :).

enjoying On-Course Status

2009-03-09T18:40:00.001+08:00

Do you know? the average person has …

Public Holidays = 11
1/2 Days = 1 (Day off, misc etc)
Annual Leave = 21
Medical Leave = 5
Organisation non working days = 2
Training = 4

For a total of 44 non-work days!

And since no. of workdays in a year = 260, that leaves us with 216 working days. Hmm… fruit for thought. So if we are only to work 8 hrs a day, we are only productive for 20% of the time the entire year. Hmm.. maybe that’s why there’s just so much OT required.

Anyway, looking at last year, I didn’t take any medical leave (damn), should have reported sick whenever felt like it. But then again, nah.. its not good to be ill, unless for minor instances.

This year, seems to have many opportunities for training, but local courses am still often required to return to clear some work. But not all the time though, like today, came back home rather early. Courses are also great opportunities to meet up and catch up with friends so well, that’s a great thing. And hey.. I have the chance to go on an overseas course again soon! Definitely looking forward to it…