WOOoo.

Attended my army friend’s wedding last night at Ritz. Should have taken some pictures to show you guys. Anyway, he’s very well-off yet without airs and amicable. He’s taller and larger than me – and is like a giant teddy bear. Interestingly, his bride is from China. Also, I observed that most of his guests looked rather sophisticated and classy.

So, what does it make me think of marriage and wedding? Well….you need loads of money!!! Sorry, can’t live on love alone.

Yesterday’s newspapers featured this engineering diploma graduate-turned-derivatives trader, who’s earning big bucks. What intrigues and amazes me was, if I didn’t recall wrongly, he attended just a 2-month apprenticeship before becoming a trader in a couple of financial institutions. And now, he owns a Porsche.

It seems like the finance industry is the best place to make the most money, but also the first place to retrench and ‘collapse’. One of the ‘big-bucks-earning’ jobs would be trading, though the life is highly stressful. I guess it’s a give-and-take: you either ‘lose your life’ for the first half then retire comfortably, or you ‘lose your life’ slowly and routinely, but struggles a fair bit after retirement, maybe.

What do I want to be in future? Hmm, a job that allows me to meet clients and travel around? Can be related to chemicals too. That’s for now, though.

Endless tutorials, projects, as it seems. Pouts.

Give up not!

I was pleasantly surprised to discover that my previous entry was quoted in e SpeakGoodEnglish website. You can click on the link here and read what the author said.

This actually reminds me yet another Sunday Times article that talked about it’s not enough just to speak well, but also write well. The author made mention of our late Dr Goh Keng Swee, who possessed very powerful writing skills and how he contributed to the success of Singapore. The article also said that MOE is revamping the way English is taught - so as to develop a stronger foundation for students in writing and oral communications skills, through more engaging and interactive platforms like drama, story-telling, etc.

Two implications: First, it points us back to the same old point – reading is the panacea to improving oral and writing skills, which will then enable one to express oneself clearly and accurately.

Yes, so now I’ve been trying to read my textbooks religiously. Sniggers.

Second, most of the pedagogies of the past cannot be applied unto the kids of today, who are vastly different from those of the past. Kids nowadays are smarter, more bold and liberal. Example (which is not related to education per se), parents now need to worry if scolding or beating their kids too much (judged by the latter), would force them to leave the house and never come back.

And so, the ways of disciplining kids have evolved – to an extent that some parents actually feel that scolding and beating must be prohibited. To that, I say ‘Good luck to your kids’. Spare the rod and you’ll spoil the child. Definitely, I’m not hinting that corporal punishment is THEE way to go. Again, there has to be a balance – when it’s time to scold or beat, you jolly well do so, in hope that will drill a tough lesson into the kid’s heart and not just mind.

In any case, kids nowadays are truly terrifying. Shudders.

Moving on…

One of my most favourite drummers is coming to town! I’m still contemplating whether to attend since it’s quite near to my exam dates. We’ll see. But if there’s a clinic by him, I SURE go!!

I’m missing Lavender’s tim sum and Geylang’s gongbao…!!

Rev it up !

Did you read Saturday’s newspapers?

Flabbergasted to read that a final year NUS chemical engineering student is jailed and caned for molesting teenage boys. He has literally destroyed his 24 years of life away and presumably bright future as well. The reason(s) behind such unbelievable actions was not given.

Could there have been some trauma and scars in his childhood that drove him to become like that? I mean, given that he’s in one of the prestigious courses – NUS chemical engineering, surely he did possess a certain high level of sanity and intellect.

Like I mentioned before, part of our beliefs, thinking and deportment are moulded based on how we grew up and what we were exposed to, when young. Yes, any ‘deviations’ could be corrected, technically. But, as they only seem to manifest themselves at a later age, more often than not, it would be extremely difficult to overcome, as the ‘impressionable age period’ has passed. May he find God somehow.

Then there was an article on speaking Singlish, which I think was sparked by the recent uproar caused by Ms Ris Low, the Ms Singapore World 2009. I watched how and what she spoke – it was utterly horrendous (just youtube it and listen for yourself)! Btw, she’s not pretty at all! Have all the judges lost their sight and hearing?!

The author was saying that sometimes when people strive to speak good english with good diction, they end up being deemed as preposterous, ridiculed and worse, ostracized. So, it’s either you succumb to the peer pressure, in order to continue being in the group, or be courageous and be whom you want to be. That, I won’t deny.

Yes, I belong to the group of people who have always yearned to speak and pronounce well – good content and enunciation, I mean. Undoubtedly, ‘good content of speaking’, be it good humour, good thoughts, is derived from how well-read you are. As for enunciation, it simply means you gotta start working that tongue and mouth the right way – when it’s time to TH, you TH; when it’s time to -ed a word, you jolly well -ed it. Of course, it’s truly not easy! especially the TH – if you don’t do it correctly, it simply sounds crap and poser-rish.

The fact that many are very comfortable with Singlish, recognising that it’s our culture and some form of identity, subtly discourages people to correct it. The author sums it up by saying, be who you want to be. However, surrender temporarily when the time calls for it. Pretty apt, I feel.

Now here’s couple classic grammatical errors:

 ’you eat finish already? Which comes from direct translation of  ‘吃完了吗?’ Correct way of saying could be ‘Have you finished eating?’

‘I haven’t do…haven’t eat’. Should be  ’haven’t done…haven’t eaten’  – using past participles. Ok, that reminds me of my english tutor long time ago and secondary form teacher who would fine us $1, if she heard us speak with wrong grammar.

Btw, I want to qualify that my ‘England is not as powderful’ as you think…DO NOT hesitate to correct yours truly when you hear me speaking wrongly.

————————————-

I took a walk at Orchard last Friday. It was like babes galore! Ooops.

Have you thought of being a yuppie?

Well, here’s another confession of sin: I do wish to be one. That’s another can of worms which I shall deal with in future…

What?!

I did not have enough time to complete the paper, albeit I know how to do! What the…!

That reminds me of what my senior who had gone to Sweden for exchange, told me. With similar difficulty level and intensity (not this paper I mean), the exams there could have a duration of 5 hours, where students can walk in and out. How exactly they conduct the exam, preventing cheating to take place, beats me.

The immense obsession with grades that’s developed in us since young, the fast-paced lifestyle and culture that we’ve to adapt. Any deviation from such, often imply that the chances of surviving ‘relatively well’ in this brilliant tiny island called Singapore, would be rather slim. That’s why I’ve seen people in university who literally devote their life wholly to studying; having extremely little involvement with ‘the outside world’ or ‘having no life’ as we sometimes put it.

I won’t deny the fact that it’s crucial to study hard and achieve good results, in order to start a good career. However, there’s a balance here as well. A delicate one, I feel. Grades could only bring you to a certain limit, other aspects of achievement and life like soft-skills, CCAs, etc, would definitely play a part as well. Life is definitely more than that.

Surely I’m having a good balance not, though I strive.

It seems strange that I randomly talked about the above. Well, it’s because these thoughts just came when I was thinking about what happened to the test – so prone to be disappointed and even frustrated with myself. I did study well for it. It’s just unfortunate that I couldn’t ‘perform at the required speed’, I guess.

Anyway.

I’ve spoken to Wei about using own cymbals and/or snare. Now awaiting a reply from the church. Pray that this request will be granted! Have been trying to master the famous Rosanna shuffle groove. Truly, it pays tremendously to do it REAL SLOW and RELAXED. Impatience and arrogance would only impede progress! And, I need to know Mr Moeller, much better!

Mid-term break is next week. How great.

To catch up, study and start on projects, that is.

The bread at Yamazaki (Tampines 1) are fabulously tantalising and delicious!

Feel like trying all their different types of bread…!

Separation test is next Thursday. Would true understanding equate appropriate application of knowledge? What do you think? I’ve been trying hard to understand, clearly, that is; and ‘link everything properly’, but it just seems…tough and tormenting. It’s like ‘why didn’t I think of that’? Can get rather frustrating. Alright, at the very least, it stretches and trains my analytical and critical problem-solving skills. I hope?!

IA registration is on now. I hope most would just continue to think they should choose only Exxon and Shell to intern at. Literally everyone would just mention these two, since undoubtedly they are the biggest oil players in the world, and pay the best.

I won’t deny my desire to work in either 1 of them too. Who doesn’t want to have their resume beautified? Get paid well and stuff?  But, with where I am now, competing with all the smarties and ‘more active’ people seems to be a waste of effort. So perhaps it’s wiser to choose those not-so-commonly-known-among-undergraduates companies.

I pray that God would grant me a fulfilling and rewarding internship. For His glory.

When shit flies to your face, take a different or rather positive perspective, clean up and press on.

I need a jap buffet…soon.

Here we go again…

Looks like I really need to head down to the Comex show this coming Thursday – to get my thumbdrive and a decent pair of earphone.

Anyone wants to join me??

Learnt that painful lesson already. I shall be EXTRA careful ALL THE TIME!!!

I realised now the typical config of a desktop or laptop would include 6GB of RAM and 1 TB of harddisk space!!  I don’t know how fast that would be. Maybe less than 1 second to boot up or run a programme? 1 TB  – you know how exorbitantly HUGE that is?!?! Breath-taking!

I cannot deceive myself any longer by thinking that I could study at home. It’s far better to get my lazy bum to the study room, enjoy the bright yet comfortable lightings and strong air-con (yes, I love it freezing cold), and get down to work.  There, I could definitely accomplish more than what I could at home.

Interestingly, when I study at YIH where it’s flooded with a lot of PRCs, I feel more motivated and energetic to go the extra mile. Perhaps it’s because of the vibe that they produce. You could see most tables filled with books and notes - and some with nobody at it. Yes, they leave their stuff there (definitely overnight), to mark their presence there!

So on days when I’m in school, I think I need to camp there till midnight. And my free days study room. That’s the ideal plan la, of course. Fingers crossed.

Procrastination is the root of all failures…Agree.

Seriously, I need to re-evaluate and re-confirm how terriblyI want to improve my grades, be a (much) more organised person, and self-upgrade. 

Ok, enough said. Back to work, shall we.

A greatx10 blooper, again!

How UTTERLY CARELESS could I get!! AGAIN!!

Someone smack me hard on the head, please. =\

I lost my 8gb thumbdrive in the Thinklab, as I was rushing for tutorial.

 It contains a lot of very important documents for my ENTIRE semester!

I’ve done what’s necessary, hoping that the person who has taken it away, would be gracious and kind enough to return back.

Pray that God will somehow find it back for me (Pray for me, will you).

Procrastinate not.

I was shopping at Bugis last Friday and something ’strange’ or should I say gross, happened.

While heading for the escalator, I saw 2 Thai girls (whom I think were likely ladyboys) among the crowd. They were kind of smiling and stealing glances at me – I didn’t care at all of course.  They somehow came in front of me, slowed down their pace. Then, one of them suddenly just stopped, while the other walked alittle further and halted, waiting for her friend to catch up.

As I was about to pass her by, the girl who stopped first, all of a sudden DELIBERATELY knocked unto me! It’s not the typical shoulder-to-shoulder kind of bump, but her face went unto my shoulders, grabbed my arms and exclaimed ’sorry’ in a lustful manner! I was totally shocked!! I didn’t utter a word, but cracked a faint smile and went down the escalator. And she still gazed at me with a smile. Shuddersss.

If it were a SG girl, I might just say something. But of course, no girls would even do such a thing in such a place.

——-

Wanting to find an avenue for me to hone my speaking skills, I decided to find out more about the NUS Toastmasters club through 1 of their sessions. Toastmasters is actually an international organisation with numerous branches/clubs around the world. Just Singapore alone, you’d find close to 100 clubs. It’s a club which helps people to build up their confidence and skills in public speaking and presentations. You’ve to pay a membership fee, in order to be part of the club, and get access to the learning materials.

A typical chapter meeting would consist of 2 segments : table topics and prepared speeches. Table Topics is a time where volunteers come up to speak impromptu on any random topics given. While the Prepared Speeches will have people who have booked a timeslot beforehand to deliver their speech (guided and prepared based on each project’s theme and objectives). Both of which will be evaluated by senior communicators – people who have completed the projects and moved on to higher levels.

There are 10 projects which you would complete, at your own comfortable pace; each of them focuses on different aspects of public speaking. Upon completion of all the projects, you’d receive a certificate. So it’s like a course.

If you are wondering what happens if you make bloopers or get flustered, etc; well, let’s just say that everyone who is there is prepared to make whatever mistakes they could make, and doesn’t care much what others think or say. All they care about is to gain more of that speaking experience, through which you improve gradually.

What’s holding me back somewhat is the chances for me to speak. Because there will be many wanting to speak and the club is actually very huge! Btw, it’s the largest in Singapore. You might not get a chance to speak at every session – which means you’re there solely as an audience. I think I should take this ‘risk’. No harm trying.

—–

Sheesh me! I’ve been procrastinating quite a lot, thinking that there’s enough time, enough time, enough time! Foolish me. I truly do not buy the theory or rather excuse of ‘no time’. It’s all about time (and stress) management, is it not??

I will not procrastinate in the name of Jesus.

As usual, class95 was spinning cool music after 1am, and one of the songs played was this:

It (especially the intro) somehow gave a very romantic, sensual yet warm feel to the wee hours. How much more if you were out for a spin, with such music at the background right. Fabulous!

Needless to say, it’s an ‘old band’ – from the 80s. Don’t dismiss such bands easily just because they are old. In fact, I hold great respect for bands and artistes from the 80s, and 90s. Because there are still a lot of things that a modern musician could glean from. From a perspective of a drummer, it would be the feel of the groove and his fill-ins.

I don’t know if that’s considered rock ballad or rock; Anyhow, I find both ’clean’ and simple, compared to the rock music nowadays – simply jarred by the overly-driven electronic guitars. Music of the past just appeared to be more ‘controlled’ – the right amount and eclectic blend of instrumental solos and grooves.

Below is another piece that gives the same vibe:

As I was researching on the band, Bad English, I realised the pianist belonged to a world renowned band, Journey!

The band got a new lead singer. Nothing surprising? You’re wrong. Having replaced Steve Perry, Arnel Pineda, the current lead singer was discovered on Youtube. Arnel who grew up in Philippines, had his covers uploaded on Youtube. Soon, he was spotted and invited by the band leader, Neal Schon, over to the US for an audition. He debuted with Journey in Chile, 2008. You can find out more about them through Wiki – Journey or Arnel Pineda. =)

So now, A Filipino with a legendary ang-moh band. Cool huh. Someone who had been just singing in pubs, doing covers, became famous overnight, and now tours with the eminent band, Journey.

Filipinos are one of the most musically-talented groups of people among Asians. In fact, there are a few other Filipinos who have successfully entered into the international scene, like Charice Pempengco who’s only 16!!!. Ohhh..you should watch her sing with Celine Dion!

What a heartwarming video! Frankly, I felt emotional while watching her sing.  A young girl blessed with such a wonderful talent from God!

Random (2)

I heard this quote by the gymnast twin sisters: ‘Put in effort like a superman, and you’ll get superman’s results’.

What do you think? Does luck (Of course, Christians don’t believe in it.) or other elements come into play too?

I didn’t really understand why some customers were upset or even frustrated when they were served by PRC waiter staff, until just now when I had my fill at MOF(suntec) and YamiYoghurt. Seeing that we are Chinese, they somehow automatically communicate with us in Mandarin, which, is nothing wrong though, in a general sense, but when I, the customer, speak to you in English first, shouldn’t you, the waitress, converse in the same language as well? Unless you politely request me to speak in Mandarin, which I won’t mind

Well, speaking to me in either language is fine – I’m not like a die-hard English-lang fanatic, though I think that speaking English in that kind of setting, would be more appropriate. What upsets me was that she couldn’t answer my queries on the menu properly – It sounded rather flippant and ‘just-read-the-descriptions-alright-period’. At Yami, the PRC staff asked what toppings I wanted, in Mandarin.

It’s really astonishing to hear and see numerous PRCs landing unto our shores, taking up jobs…jobs which we, Singaporeans won’t want; and so willing to work much harder and longer than most Singaporeans. We should pull up our socks huh.

It feels good to just have a good meal after ‘work’, chill and enjoy the beautiful evening.

‘Coco before Chanel’ is coming out end of August! I want to watch it! Hopefully that person won’t put me on A380. I read the synopsis – very intriguing and interesting. So, do check it out.

I noticed I’ve been exclaiming with ‘Oh dear’ pretty much. It sounds….too fay for me personally? And not manly enough? Some guys I know ‘are fit’ to use that phrase. I don’t mean they are gays or sissys btw, but they would definitely sound natural with it. To be on the safe side, I think better use it ’sparingly’…

Separation process is separating me… :O