Ivan...Ivan-ising...Ivanization

Travel Plans 2012 is out!

2012-02-11T22:23:00.001+08:00

after a happening 2011 which saw me going to 5 different countries and 6 different cities, my travel plans for 2012 is out!!!!

Late March- Early Apr - Going to Taiwan with parents, uncle, aunt and cousin. 6 adults, 7D6N private tour which will bring us from North to South and Back to North.

Although this is my second visit to Taiwan, it is officially my first time there as a tourist.

The last time i went was part of my NS training, which gave us a glimpse of Taiwan after the training.

This time round, i am going to play more, eat more and see more!!!!

It is kinda expensive relative to the price which people usually pay for Taiwan trip. My trip is already approximately S$2,000 inclusive of hotels and air tickets. I guess it is due to the fact that we engage a private tour guide and transport.

Well, i guess with we got to pay the premium for enjoying the "Own time own target" way of touring compared to the packed and tiring tour package style.

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1-15 July : NEW ZEALAND !!!!!!

this was not forecast-ed to happen...until 1 - 2 months ago when Meanie Hui jio me to join the other people to go together.

my response was a swift and quick YES!

i have always wanted to try SKYDIVING and interestingly, the entire group share the same interest of going for Skydiving.

while July may not be the best month to go, as it is winter time, but i am certainly looking forward to this trip.

There will be a lot of First time for this trip.

- first time doing sky diving
- first time driving a vehicle in foreign land
- first time traveling in winter time
- first time seeing snow? (don't know if it's good or bad if it happen to snow during our visit)

etc etc etc..

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countdown 1 month + to my Taiwan trip

and 4.5 months to NEW ZEALAND!

wohooo

this will be a fun (^^) and financially broke (>.<) year....i will need to try do away with unnecessary spending and save up for these trips!

Happy Lunar New Year

2012-01-23T12:22:00.001+08:00

Happy LUNAR NEW YEAR!!!!

It is the Year of the Mighty Water Dragon, 小弟我 shall wish all of your, whoever you are, reading my blog right now

龙年 super HAPPY

身体 super HEALTHY

皮包 a lot MONEY

投资 super LUCKY

上班，天天smiley

新年快乐！！！！

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today is 大年初一, ironically, there'll be no 拜年 today, as Day 1 is usually for Paternal side, and my uncle and family has gone overseas for holidays.

Last yr, we went together to Tasmania, Australia. This year, we did not join them for the NZ trip. If every year go, very "siong" on the pockets :)

So today, i will pretty much stay home, watch all the TV programs, munch on my CNY goodies..and o ya..i going to bring my parents to watch 龙众舞，hope that it is nice as the tickets cost $11 todaY!!!!!

初二will be maternal side visiting, plus visit my uni friend house in the morning as usual :D

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to me, 新年 is less exciting when you are older than when you are young. when you are young, probably the extra "petty cash" is something which you look forward to every year.

and of course, 新年 is probably the only official time you are allowed to gamble without asking your parents for permission.

but as you grow up, these 2 are less attractive, as you gain in financial power, and basically can gamble (refering to MJ) anytime you want :)

So i take CNY as more of a gathering with relatives, and of course, to be asked the typical questions like when find GF, when get married, etc etc etc.............

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my gambling luck for 2012 hasn't been that good. my losing rate is 100% before yesterday. i.e 逢赌必输！

but glad yesterday i won a few $$ in MJ, hope that signifies a change of luck with the LUNAR year and not carry over the suay luck for the entire 2012 instead.

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based on those analysis of zodiacs i've seen, the Year of Dragon seem pretty neutral to the RATS. love life wise, they say RATS will have 桃花, lets hope it is true.

Money wise, also got 正财，hope it all come true !

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k, that's all for my CNY posts.

once again, wish all of you, including myself, a smooth sailing 龙年, with lots of money, good health, and prosperity ahead!

2012 New Year Goals

2012-01-02T18:31:00.000+08:00

First blog post of 2012, and it shall be my new year GOALS for 2012.

Initially i wanted to pen down my NEW YEAR RESOLUTIONS just like any others would.

I saw my investing mentor Dennis Ng's post on facebook, and here is what he wrote:

Don't start New Year Resolutions. Why?

Why most New Year Resolutions fail becos people make it a "Wish", a "should have", they "try"...which is why they fail.

Make New Year Goals and Committments.

When you're committed, there is NO Turning back, when you make it a "Must", you will NOT stop and will not give up till you succeed.

And if this is the thinking and attitude, you cannot help but succeed.

It felt that he made sense in the above comment.

Although it may sound like it is just some playing around with the terms to use, GOALS instead of RESOLUTIONS, it is the way we treat the "Resolutions" vs the "Goals" we made that differs..

but anyway, i am going to make my new year goals!!!!

Goal No 1: i am going to lose my belly! it's a bit disturbing big. I didn't bother about it when it first appeared, and slowly it grew day by day.

No way i am going to end up with a bulging tummy at this age.

I will exercise once a week, be it running or swimming, and get rid of it !

Goal No 2: i will improve my piano improvisation skills till i am impressed by myself when playing :D

quite a bit of hardwork involved, but it will be a goal which i will be working towards :D

Goal No 3: to be wealthier, both financial and mentally. will be more vigilant on any investments i made, promise myself not to get into the self-denial mode which i did in 2011.

will aim to take up more courses to improve myself

that's about all for my goals. 3 goals. Goal no.2 is carried forward from 2011. Goal No.1 is pretty recent. Goal no. 3 will be challenging, but since it is a goal, i will work towards achieving it.

Happy 2012 friends, and i will stick to my "KPI" of 1 post per fortnight for this year.

cheers!

Flashback 2011

2011-12-31T16:14:00.001+08:00

364 days has past, and i am logging in my last post for 2011.

2011 has been a roller coaster year for me, and while i am writing this post, i am looking through my blog posts from Jan - Dec, at the same time.

flashback 2011, let me recapped what has happened, but before that, i shall review my 2011 new year resolutions and see what has been/ has not been achieved.

tracking my last post in 2010, my resolution for 2011 was

No 1. ) Grow rich & Stay FIT

No 2.) Increase my skills in playing piano

No 1, i have failed. I did not grow richer as much as i wanted due to the volatile stock market (><), and i did not grow fitter. On the contrary, i grew fatter !!! damn !

No 2...kinda achieve, but 1 year is not enough, coupled with my "lack of motivation" sometimes, i have not improved to the level i wanted. However, i am certain that i have improved over the last 9-10 months of lessons.

OVerall, maybe a 30-40+ point / 100 pts i shall give myself.

~('n')~

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Feb 11: took part in my company's carnival performance. Together with 2 other colleagues, we formed a 3 man band called RUBBERBAND and performed Bruno Mar's : JUST THE WAY YOU ARE at Marina Sq.

Although our performance wasn't terrific, but the overall experience was great.

On CNY, i went to Tasmania, Australia for a 6 days holidays with my family and relatives. it was a very relaxing trip. Away from the urban jungle, and immersed in the beauty of Mother Nature.

March, went back to NUS with meanie hui. Shall do it again next year :D

April, bought my iPhone 4 !!!!!!! a dream came true after 3 years of waiting. Till date, i am still loving my phone as it was in April.

kudos to my company and department, i made my maiden trip to Universal Studios. As a Singaporean, i am proud of this awesome tourist attraction which a tiny weeny country like us can have.

hope to go back again to try the Transformer ride!

June, made my maiden trip to United States...wohoo.! it is the first time i flew so far, and more importantly, it is the first time i traveled ALONE !

flying few thousand km away alone to another country is really exciting. a good time to train my independence and street smartness :D

glad i was able to go through it smoothly and returned safely.

visited Virginia, Washington DC and New York. Beside the working portion, the R&R portion was filled with lots of shopping.

hope i will have the chance to revisit the US soon :D

July, my first milestone in career advancement, got a promotion to a higher grade, but still same appointment and jobscope. bonus was decently fat, and the pay rise allowed me to save more $$ every month.

September, bought a new pair of running shoes for IPPT.

Oct, managed to pass my ippt once again..phew..hope i can continue to pass my IPPT for the upcoming years.

Supposed to go Bangkok, but unfortunately, Mother Nature did not approve our trip and decided the flood Bangkok just about the time we were supposed to go.

Glad that BKK is back to normal now, and hope we can visit Bangkok again next year.

oyea..on the 29th Oct, i grew older by 1 year old, and a step nearer to the BIG 3. scary !

Nov, my 3rd oversea trip of the year, and the most enjoyable 1 to be frank. visited Europe, the big 3 economies - Germany, France, Italy over a span of 10 days.

Germany for work, France+ Italy for a holiday.

really a good experience visiting this countries, once again, another dream came true to go these beautiful countries.

Rome was very nice, super ancient feeling. Paris was very modern and every angle of the Eiffel Tower is simply captivating.

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while it probably takes 5 min to read the above post, i have actually spent close to 25mins typing the above post.

2011 has been a good and bad year for me.

Good, is because i managed to visit several countries for the first time. In fact, 2011 is my "Most Traveled" year! 5 countries in a year...i doubt i am able to achieve this next yr.

Good, also because i got a promotion (in grade) and a pay rise...so financial wise it is better

Bad, i hurt my back in Mar/Apr period. It was a really bad injury which happen out of the blue.

Bad, because my investment in stocks turned pretty nasty and i exited the market (though a bit late, but still better than if i hold it till now) in RED. Several important lessons learned from this year of Bear market.

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2012 will be a challenging year, with the global financial market be in peril. based on my investing mentor, all the "kicking the cans down the road" action by the politicians thus far, will finally hit the end of the road.

the next financial crisis will be pretty nasty. Shall cross my fingers and hope for the bests.

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that's about all for my flashback 2011.

Wish you a HAPPY AND SMOOTH SAILING YEAR AHEAD !

10 days in Europe: Paris (II)

2011-12-10T17:37:00.001+08:00

Part 1: Germany

Part 2: Rome (I)

Part 3: Rome (II)
Part 4: Paris (I)

k...shall continue my post on Paris..

ended my first night in Paris with a visit to Eiffel tower, and up the tower to have a nice aerial shot of the beautiful city.

have 1 full day to tour Paris (which is actually not enough).

took the hop on hop off bus which goes around the city.

unlike Rome, where the bus drops you off pretty far from the attractions (due to the narrow road), this bus drops you pretty close to where you want to go.

it gets pretty cold up there, temperature around 10-15 degrees i guess.

Rome was better, 10-18 degrees.

in terms of sights, Paris is pretty much like London. A modern city with ancient architectures.

the bus ride is pretty long, due to the slow traffic in the town area.

along the way, we past by Louis Vuitton Headquarters. They have their own LV flag too !!!

some other sights along the way..:)

Arh of Triumph

back to the same spot where i was last night. taking the day shots this time round.

night shots are nice, same goes for day shot, where you have a nice bland of blue sky with the bronze silver metallic tower.

look at the long queue, i was lucky to gone up the night before where the queue is way shorter!

from the bottom centre of the tower

the other side of the tower is where the real beauty lies.

this is because we found another great colour for the photos...GREEN!!!!

Green, metallic gold, Blue

awesome combi for a nice photos.

took more photos over this side

10 days in Europe - Paris (I)

2011-12-10T13:49:00.001+08:00

Part 1: Germany

Part 2: Rome (I)

Part 3: Rome (II)

okie, i'm back.

I think blogspot does not show all my previous post due to the many photos included in each post, some of my earlier post have been archived.

thus, i will provide the links on top, for access to previous postings, just like how i usually do for all my trips.

after 2.5 days in Rome, i departed for my 2nd destination of my trip, PARIS !

i wanted to visit as many countries as possible, all the iconic tourist attractions, as i do not know when is the next time i will get a chance to visit them.

Thus, i planned to go to PARIS, France which is 1 of the iconic tourist country in Europe.

my transport from country to country is all via their domestic flight.

in total, i took 3 domestic flight which amounted to ~S$700, (> <)

but guess i didn't have much choice as i have limited time, and i want to visit as many places as possible, so taking a flight seems to be the best ( definitely not cost efficient) way.

the flight from Rome to Paris is approximately 2hrs... i was so tired that i snoozed off when the plane was preparing for the flight take off.

the next time i woke up, i am already in the air !

touching down @ pairs CDG airport

the taxi fare from Airport to town is very ex ! 46 Euros !!!!!

and here's my tiny weeny hotel which cost S$220/night. freaking expensive, but once again, paid for the location.

all because i am on a rush trip, so convenience is a priority.

Antin-Trinite hotel. Superior location, just beside the shopping centre. Macham having a hotel beside Takashimaya like that.

we headed off for early dinner first, before heading off to SHOP !

PAris has more chinese restaurants due to its cosmopolitan culture.

it is really shocking to find that they charge the food by GRAMS !

unbelievable, imagine eating CHAP CAI BENG, and paying by the weight of food you ordered. (@@)

as mentioned, my hotel is very near the shopping mall, Galleri Lafeyette, a.k.a 老佛爷 to the PRC, we headed off for Round 1 of shopping, and return to our hotel to put our goods before going for other activities.

LV shop ! my first time buying things in LV.

I wouldn't even bother stepping into LV in singapore, but when in PAris, you sure have to step in to join in the tourist crowd.

there are super a lot of china tourists, freaking rich, buying LV, Chanel, Gucci, Prada, Hermes as if they are the price of Charles & Keith equivalent.

thus, you will find almost all branded shop having chinese sales person inside to service this "rich" group of people.

As a Chinese Singaporean, i cannot throw the face of my country. Thus, i also went in to buy some!

dun be mistaken, the following bag is bought for my friend, not mine :(

after we placed our bags in the hotel, we visited the Eiffel Tower !

awesome jaw dropping night view !!!!

i heard they can change the colour of the lighting as and when they like.

laser beam shinning bright from the top of the tower.

to have the nicest view of the tower, we got to visit 1 of the monument/ museum which is approx 200m from the tower.

walking towards the tower.

entrance to the tower cost 15 euro i think, and there are different pricing for entrance to Level 2, and access to the top

i took the access to the top ticket.

Level 1 is restaurant, 2 is mid level, and 3 is top.

here's a view of the city from the top.

it is freaking cold up there, due to the strong wind blowing. Beanie cap ON!

Singapore is 10 745 km away!

after visiting top level, we go to the mid level, Level 2. and here's a shot from Level 2

caught the Eiffel tower blinking! heard it happens for 1-3 mins every 1 hour after 8pm.

10 days in Europe - Rome (II)

2011-12-04T17:17:00.001+08:00

2nd full day in Rome, rushed off to visit other tourist attractions as there are no time for touring the next day.

here's my breakfast. not bad. buffet style.

stayed at Hotel Selene, just 5 mins walk to Termini station. very good location!

took the hop on bus, which cost 25 euro with a 3 days validity.

Rome is a beautiful city, along the way, i was greeted with several monuments and ancient structures.

a last look at the Colosseum

a structure which looks similar to Colosseum

the stone of the Truth...took some effort to find this place....just to see this ancient stone.

Rome has such natural water coolers around, very interesting.

visited the Pantheon. a nice ancient structure

headed of to a hustle and bustle Plaza, or so called PIAZZA in Italian terms.

Piazaa Navona, a bit like a mega pasar malam :D

after lunch, i headed off to the Vatican Museum, it was a pretty far walk up there from St PEter's square.

the entrance ticket cost 15euro i think.

the Vatican Museum house the Sistine Chapel, where the great art of Michelangelo lie.

here's a description of THE LAST JUDGEMENT by Micheangelo.

as photo-taking is prohibited in the hall that contains this masterpiece, the museum erected several of such boards outside to allow tour guides to explain to visitors.

the hall is decorated with countless sculptures, paintings, on the wall and ceiling. really beautiful.

paintings of Christ

and here's a secret shot of THE LAST JUDGEMENT by Michelangelo. the ceiling is decorated with paintings of Jesus, scene from the bible.

and The LAst Judgement is the last day of earth. i bet the Christians will appreciate it more than me.

a zoomed in shot of the painting which took 4 yrs to complete in the 1500s AD

fast forward, at night, i climbed up the Spanish step to take a limited aerial view of the Rome streets.

that's about all for my 2nd day in Rome...

10 days in Europe- Rome, Italy (I)

2011-12-04T02:22:00.001+08:00

after my Germany work trip, i flew to Rome for my own R&R trip.

booked domestic flight,. Air France which took 1hr 10mins to fly from Frankfurt to Rome.

touching down at Fiumicino Airport.

took a cab, entering the ancient Rome city which has these brick walls around.

it's winter time in europe, so the day starts growing dark @ 4+ and by 5, it's completely dark.

my hotel is just 5mins walk to Termini station, 1 of the central station in Rome. This is the place where i took my tour bus everyday.

their ticketing machine.

along the way, we saw this nice natural fountain. Along Rome, there're several such fountains. Beautiful!

if you find the earlier fountain nice, then you've got to see this next fountain.

the TREVI FOUNTAIN. the biggest fountain in Rome i think.

look at the sheer tourist crowd.

the sight of the fountain was really breathe taking. the architecture and sculptures on the fountain is really beautiful

after visiting the fountain, went to the VIA Del CORSO, their orchard road.

Rome's map is 1 of the most challenging map to read for a tourist. the street names are long and often, hard to find in the map.

it's hard to imagine that Italy is 1 of the countries in debt crisis when 1 visits the Del Corso. lots of people going around, buying stuff from the branded shops, macham the economy is bustling.

the street performers in Rome are damn talented. they look more like professional artistes than street performers.

the next morning, visited various MUST SEE Tourist attractions. of which, number 1 is COLESSO, or COLOSSEUM.

it's an ancient stadium built in xx B.C by the king. It is really hard to imagine how this "mega structure" was built back then...

those who have watched GLADIATOR will better appreciate each and every single view of this ancient structure.

too bad i've never watched Gladiator before... (><)

there are 2 levels which are accessible to tourist.. the following few photos are taken at Level 1

after which, climbed to Level 2 for a more aerial view of the Colosseum.

after visiting the Colosseum, walked to the nearby ROMAN FORUM.

on the way there, past by the ARCH OF CONSTANTINE.

the ancient pavements, it is pretty tiring to walk in Rome with all the ancient pavements which are uneven.

PALENTINE HILL...to see some ancient ruins.

aerial view from Palentine Hill

the Roman Forum, where more ancient ruins lie.

10 days in Europe- Germany

2011-12-03T18:15:00.001+08:00

hello, i'm back from the a work and travel trip to Europe.

the weather there is really cold when i touched down at Frankfurt airport.

it was probably 8 degrees or so, and mist will form with every puff of breath you exhale.

my first time experiencing that :p

my first stop in Europe is Germany, where i'll be at my OEM place for project purposes.

my OEM is located at Fulda, a small town which is 1.5hrs drive from Frankfurt.

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backtracked a bit, we were fortunate to be able to choose Singapore Airlines as the carrier to Germany, the plane was pretty empty from Sg to Frankfurt and i was able to occupy 3 seats !!! shiok, as that means that i can sleep in the most ideal position on the plane!!!

watched a couple of movies, like SMURF, CAPTAIN AMERICA...etc....

the flight duration is approximately slightly less than 12 hrs, and given that SG was 7hrs ahead of Europe, we reached there effectively 5hrs later from our departure time in SG.

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our hotel in Fulda, a very spacious and cosy hotel which cost about 60 euros per night.

there is no free wifi !!! only LAN cable internet connection..damn sianz...

the town is pretty quiet or should i say dead in the morning.

this shot is taken at 9a.m in the morning and there's little movement in the town. i wonder where are the people!!!

fast forward to the 1st dinner at Germany, we tried the iconic dish - Pork Knuckles

the portion was real big, and requires stamina to finish the dish.

personally, i felt the taste was normal, nothing very fantastic :|

but the beer was awesome. i swear that it's the best beer i ever had in my life. it's brewed locally, very smooth tasting and not very fizzy.

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outside the hotel, there was a makeshift market which i heard, only appears on certain day of the week.

our daily breakfast, same throughout the entire stay

on the 3rd night, we headed for some Chinese cuisine dinner as 1 of the delegate buay tahan continuous western food for all the meals. haha.

sprite+beer, an interesting combination.

on our last night, we saw the Xmas market which starts 1 mth before Xmas day.

finally after 4 days, we saw some life in the town. It was pretty crowded, and i assume 1/2 the town is at the market.

it was very cold and gave me a more authentic feeling of how a Xmas should feel like.

we saw a lot of people queuing up for a drink, so we joined the queue, and using our magic fingers, point here point there, and got our drinks as well. i think it cost 6 euros.

it was a superb drink, hot RED WINE with RUM, first time trying hot red wine, and it's a perfect drink for such a cold weather.

other photos of the happening Xmas market.

first time hearing "We Wish You a Merry Xmas" in German language.

woke up early on saturday, to prep for our flight which is at 12pm.

last few photos of the peaceful town before we leave this place, and chances are i may not return to visit this town.

at Frankurt Airport, off to the next destination in Europe, ROME...

Europe

2011-11-19T11:39:00.005+08:00

2 days time, i will be departing for my 2nd trip to Europe.

kudos to my job, i actually get to visit these countries which probably i will never go, either due to $$ concerns or probably no companion to go.

unlike my previous 2 overseas trip, this trip will be for project purpose.

of course, i can't share much on what i am going there for since it is 不能说的秘密. :)

will be heading to Germany first, before clearing my leave in Rome and Paris.

really fortunate to have a nice boss who has objection of me clearing my leave after my work trip :)

looking forward to the following scenery

a yr older, a yr ......

2011-10-31T18:15:00.002+08:00

on the 29th Oct...i turned 1 year older !

went to St James with mh and perry, and together with some fren + fren's fren. we had a great night @ St James.

started off at Dragonfly first as i have always wanted to try it.

but sad to say, dragonfly not that fun la...compared to Shanghai Dolly..

both a cheena pop, but i prefer Shanghai dolly's genre of chinese songs. if nothing goes wrong, i will not return to Dragonfly again..haha....oops

anyway, we left Dragon fly around 12+ and headed to Boiler room....and then to Powerhouse.

this is the first time i stayed in a club till it closes..which is 4am !

being there at 9pm earlier on, this meant that i clubbed for 7hrs !!!! crazy

i woke up at 9a.m the following day,(stupid biological clock) feeling 1/2 dead and lethargic for the rest of the day....

my thoughts of growing old....it is very different from last time when i was 18, 21, or 24....

now i'm approaching 30yrs old, and there're a lot more expectations on what i should be doing or achieving at age range. Thus, i generally will feel a bit of stress if i am not doing or achieving what my peers are doing.

anyway...thxs for all the well wishes from my friends if you are reading my blog now...

have a good wk ahead!

Bangkok...oh NO !

2011-10-23T11:10:00.002+08:00

Bangkok trip is suppose to be in 6 days time !!!!

but shit...looks like we are really unfortunate that the Land of Smiles is becoming the Land of Water now (><)

I have been looking forward to this trip, after a 5 yrs absence from this beautiful country.

me and my frens were hoping that the flooding gets better, but apparently it's getting worse.

looks like the chances of us cancelling the trip is getting higher as each day pass with no positive news.

BANGKOK ! i'll BE BACK !!!!!!!!!

R.I.P Steve Jobs

2011-10-06T23:53:00.003+08:00

today is a very sad day.

we've lost 1 of the most inspiring, innovative man in modern history.

farewell Steve. R.I.P

IPPT

2011-10-02T17:45:00.003+08:00

after a few weeks of on-off preparation, i finally took my ippt.

fortunately, i PASS! with the $100 incentive.

the anxiety of taking ippt sets in every year because i think my fitness have dropped.

i just login to Ns.sg to see my past 3 years results, and interestingly, the data seem to suggest that my fitness have remained pretty much the same, beside the fact that my pull up has dropped by 2.

well, i am thinking how long more can this last. still a few more years in CAT Y before going CAT Y1.

hope i can continue to pass all my IPPT in the future...

2012

2011-09-21T00:04:00.008+08:00

it is 12 midnight, and it has been a long time since i blogged at such a late timing.

i have just returned from a "Graduate Seminar" hosted by Dennis Ng.

just a brief recap, i attended Dennis Ng (a local self made millionaire) seminar in May, which comprises of 3 parts...(i've attended 2 out of 3).

so once a while, probably every quarter or 1/2 yearly, he will host a gathering session where his seminars' graduate will gather, and listen to him sharing his views and analysis of what is going to happen.

perhaps some of you maybe skeptical about what he says, but if you put in a deeper thoughts, you will find that he make sense. ultimately, this is a guy who have seen the market go up and down, and have grown to his riches using his analytical thinking skills.

as he have mentioned before "everybody has their own opinions, but not all are worth listening. only follow those who have succeeded".

this is very true....given the current stock market turmoil, i hear various reasons of people entering the market...some are right, while many are not. (pls dun take it that i'm trying to show off after attending his seminars, i'm just trying to share my thoughts in as friendly way as possible).

ok...so i've just returned from his 4th graduate gathering, or my 1st graduate gathering since i get to know him only middle of this year.

the topic for this gathering is

The NEXT Global Financial Crisis has already started, and what can you can do from now onwards?

QE 3 or Quantitative Easing 3, what is it, will it be here?
Global Stock Markets, where do we go from here?
Gold and Silver, where do we go from here?
Will there be a double-dip Recession? A Depression or Stagflation? What might any of these scenario mean to you?
What are the Signs and Signals to look out for? What can you do to prepare for the NEXT Global Financial Crisis?
What's the Cause of the Financial Crisis? What can be done to Solve the Financial Crisis? What can you do to help?

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while i have been following closely to his forum, which is a good source of information exchange (www.masteryourfinance.com), the revisit of some issues around the world really paints a pessimistic view of the years ahead.

the conclusion from the 3 hrs sharing is

the next financial crisis is coming (or has already started without you knowing), and it is going to be more painful than the 2008 crisis, and it is going to last long....

I will try to share what Dennis shared, and share what i read from the forum all this while, and explain in my simple terms what will trigger the next crisis:

1) The US contributes 20+ % to the global economy, and Europe as a whole contributes another 20% to the global economy.

these 2 giants are contributing to almost 1/2 the world economy, and if these 2 giants are to go into a economy crisis, it is macham the whole world will get into a economic crisis.

(due to globalization, everybody is linked to each other, no 1 can siam, it's only how hard you kanna hit)

China contributes only 10% to global economy, while Japan another 7%...so these economies ain't gonna help to rescue the world.

2) there are already clear signs that US and Europe are getting into trouble.

US:

70% of the US economy is driven by internal consumption, i.e. the Americans buy their own product and services, and boosting their own economy.

however, US unemployment rate has stubbornly remained at 9% since the Lehman brother episode in 2008.

now you see the start of the vicious cycle

>>>pple no job >>> pple don't spend $$ >>> bizness become poor >>> bizness don't employ pple/ lay off more pple >>> unemployment stays or go higher >> go back to the start of the loop!!!!

and all the jobs stimulus packaged rolled out by Obama has failed to encourage hiring!!!

if you read the news, you'll be surprised that even Goldman Sach, which is earning profit, is planning to lay off thousands of people from their US operation outlets. (heng i heard they are coming to expand in Singapore..haha)

so according to Dennis....the US Economy will NEVER, NEVER, NEVER recover! (3 times emphasizing NEVER)

next look @ Europe:

the Eurozone dream will probably be over next yr....i.e. Eurzone will disintegrate...

the weakest links in the Eurozone right now are call PIGS

not the "PIGS" which we get pork from, but PIGS = Portugal, Italy, Greece, Spain.

Greece has been hitting the news since last yr.

everytime they appear on the news, stocks will drop like bird shit falling from the sky....

Greece is technically BANKRUPT! how scary right. we've heard people getting bankrupt, but country going bankrupt? my goodness...

the Euro bigger brothers , such as Germany and France, are desperately trying to save their weaker brothers from going into a Default

Default means they cannot pay their bills in time.

if you know how these bugger are playing around, they are just trying to loan more $, to pay back their existing loans...

so it's a never ending loop

all voice down to their poor governance, which resulted in more Spending than earning! i've read an article in CNBC which disgusted me on how the actions of these countries have brought the world into such dire situation right now.

so why Greece get into the current sibei jialat situation, that's where you must know how bond works

Bond is like borrowing $ from investors and in return, pay you interest..

for Greece, as i've mention, they keep borrowing new $ to pay back their old loans. from what i read via various forums and website, Greece was badly hurt in the 2008 financial crisis, and it became worse after that.

they got into greater debts as their credit ratings get downgraded. When credit ratings get downgraded, the bond yield will rise.

this means, investors are asking for more interest since your bond is seen as "less safe" than before. this is Economics 101.

so now on 1 hand, they still have a lot old loans to pay, and on the other hand, the borrowing cost have increased significantly (due to increase interest rate on its bonds).

so they have reach a stage they need RESCUE package from their Euro brothers to lend them $ to pay back their old loans, since they can't keep taking new expensive loans.

so that's how the Greece chapter came about.

Dennis views are that it's just a matter of time, when Spain and Portugal will ask for HELP !

"So far, 3 out of the 4 PIGS are already in trouble, the good news is these 3 PIGs are "small", in terms of their economies as compared to the whole of Euro Zone.

However, Spain is ranked No. 4 and Italy is ranked No. 3 in terms of size of economy. In my opinion, it is just a matter of time Spain might get into trouble, and when that happens, I think the 2 Richest countries Germany and France might think twice about rescuing Spain and this might lead to the disintegration and break up of Euro Zone"

and his views are this may take place in 2012....

now, that shows how jialat the top 2 leading economies in the world are right now...

______________

so what will cause the next crisis ?

according to Dennis, that will be caused by a crash in US bond market.

this will be very lengthy explanation.

instead of me typing out, i manage to find 1 article which explains Dennis opinion. don't need bother who came out with the analysis earlier. the fact that if another person also thinks so, and the person is of good credentials, then we should think deeper

please read this link for more info on the upcoming bond crash

https://transitionnow.wordpress.com/2011/07/02/the-coming-bond-market-crash/

Mid Sep post

2011-09-15T21:55:00.003+08:00

slightly more than 2 weeks since my last post.

life has been pretty ok these days...

let me recall what to update for the past 2-3weeks.....

Mid Autumn Festival

this yr i bought Peony Jade snow skin moon cake instead of Goodwoodpark.

I've learn my lessons from past yrs, not to procrastinate when buying moon cake, because there will really be a situation where you got the $$, but they don't have the moon cake to sell you.

So this year i immediately placed order when they came my company.

not bad, got 15-20% discount.

i also bought 1 box of Four Seasons D24 snowskin for my grandma. Original price = $52. I've got it for $33 ! thanks to the 20% staff discount and Buy 4 Get 1 Free promotion.

as for the snowkin, my preference still goes to GoodWood Park which i've bought for past 2 years.

Training for IPPT

starting to train for IPPT. this time the duration is pretty short. only like 3weeks to 1 month of training. hopefully i can pass.

i was shopping for my running shoes for the past 1 week as my old Adidas Shoes are giving way...

i am quite a fussy and choosy person when it comes to buying things which is to last me for a few years. so don't expect me to just buy 1 pair after 1 visit to a shop.

i'll prob shortlist the model and do a bit research online before deciding which pair to purchase.

I actually shortlisted the following pairs:

1) Asics Gel Cumulus
2) Asics Gel Pulse
3) Asics Gel Nimbus
4) Asics Gel Landreth

5) Saucony Mistral

6) Mizuno Wave rider
7) Mizuno Fortis
8) Mizuno Ultima

ended up i bought........

Mizuno Wave Precision 11 !

yupz! it does not appear in the list up there ! hahaha....contradicting myself right?!

well, i almost chose Mizuno Wave Rider. then i asked the salesperson and he recommended me to try Wave Precision.

the feel is really different. it is LIGHTER ! and more comfy, the cushioning also feels better

the salesperson also know his stuff as he himself i also a runner. so i trust his recommendation.

of course, i took out my Iphone on the spot and did a quick search for this model's review.

the reviews are all positive.

thus, given all these factors, i decided not to procrastinate any further, and bought the shoes.

hope it'll help me for my ippt :D

HPT final evaluation

2011-08-26T20:06:00.006+08:00

for the past 6 weeks, i have been pretty busy with the HPT workshop.

HPT is hark performing team, i.e the performing team from the music school i learn my guitar from.

it is not easy to get into the performing team. really need to be a well versed instrumentalist.

i think i still lack some qualities to be a performer...so i doubt i will make it into HPT..

well..my plans after this.......

i am currently learning pop piano improvisation, may want to 100% focus on it instead.

alternatively, i can take 1-to-1 lesson with another instructor, to perfect my abilities to be a performing standard guitarist.

2 choose 1... i have not made up my mind yet :D

it's pretty hard to juggle both instruments given the busy work schedule, and my laziness..oops..hahaha..

so i may take the first decision

anyway, just to post my evaluation piece on my blog as part of my fortnightly diary post.

tan, taN, tAN, TAN....!!!!

2011-08-23T00:13:00.002+08:00

which Tan will you vote for?

Tony Tan? Tan Cheng Bok? Tan Kin Lian, Tan Jee Say???

perhaps among all, i feel the fight is between Tony tan and Tan Jee Say.

it is like a sequel to the GE2011. where there are 2 sides, pro or anti garmen...with minority fence sitter.

so this PE, though PE, but the spill over effect from GE is noticeably present. Pple are still as critical as before, slam personnel over whatever they can.

well, i think it is a bit sad to see such things happen. well, pple only say the bad things abt the candidate they don't like, and never consider the good things the candidate does.

some of the bad things are nonfactual and some are simply exaggerating.

have we come to such a stage that we need to step on other people in order to climb, for our politics?

i certainly not hope so, but the various signs online is indicative that we are doing so.

sad indeed.

well.....just some ranting on my part.

lets see which Tan will emerge the champion this sat.

let me do my forecast (i actually guess GE2011 correctly, believe it or not)

the ranking are

1. TT
2. TJS
3. TCB
4. TKL

let's see if i'll be correct........

Happy National Day

2011-08-10T22:45:00.002+08:00

almost 2 weeks since i log in my last post

Happy National Day to all Singaporeans, and happy 46th birthday to Singapore where i was born, raised and will stay.

it's really a joyous occasion, especially after a recent election which temporarily polarized our society.

back on National Day, we stand united as 1 people again..

as the song goes ..."1 people, 1 nation, 1 singapore............"

personally, i am very proud to be a Singaporean. though we are a little red dot, our economic success, political stability, safety, cosmopolitan society is something which we are proud of.

however, i must say there're instances where i feel less Singaporean than before. There are simply too many foreigners on our soil. while i do agree that we need foreigners, blame it on the viscious cycle on high cost of living and low birth rate, but the sheer number and unbalanced ratio of S'porean to foreigners is quite disturbing at times.

i do hope our garmen, whom 61% voted into, will do something and make Singapore the Singapore we love.

MAJULLAH SINGAPURE!!!!! 前进吧新加坡！！！

last post of Jul'11

2011-07-31T19:38:00.002+08:00

the first month of 2nd half of 2011 has past.

let me recap what i did over this month

1) i went to BUTTER! i think it is my 3rd time there.

i do not really like BUTTER, a bit too squeezy in my opinion.

2) Went Shanghai dolly twice !!!!

first time to Shanghai dolly, it's a nice place. more suitable for me.

the age group there is more mature, late 20s and above.

i like the chinese band performance, and the english dancing music which was played.

still got 1/2 bottle for Johnny walker there, will prob go there in Aug to finish it.

_________________

that's about all for july, the rest is just the usual working, go home regime.

mid july post

2011-07-16T22:19:00.004+08:00

back again to log in a post.

it's been 2 weeks since i posted.

last weekend i was pretty busy, and dint have time to log in.

___________

last weekend..i attended a 2 days seminar called "Secrets to Marking $$ in stocks".

the speaker, or so called our "teacher" is called Dennis Ng.

he is a local self made millionaire who grew his fortune in stocks and properties.

i have signed up for a 3 part seminar. they are:

1) How to save and accumulate to 1 million $$ - 1 day

i attended this course sometime in April.

a very interesting 1 day seminar which aim to teach you on how to achieve financial freedom.

Dennis gave a very good example of the concept of achieving financial freedom.

Financial planning is like playing soccer.

you need

- Defense = which is all your insurance plans and emergency fund

- Midfield = your savings

but you can never win a world up with only defense and midfield

therefore you always need

- Strikers = which are your investments.

a nice and simple way of getting the whole picture of financial planning.

learn how to buy the correct insurance and avoid spending too much $$ on other insurance
. While it maybe too late as I've committed to some life insurance, but i definitely know how to plan for my future policies.

2) Secrets to making $$ in stocks

sounds a bit like a gimmick when you see the word "SECRET"

well, there are not really a lot secrets..but the practical way of investing.

which is to look at the Fundamental and technical ...

something which people like me would have heard and seen before.

but the course teach us more than that.

how to analyze a company etc.

3) How to make $$ in property - yet to attend

__________

Dennis is a very interesting speaker, very sincere and candid...with lots of examples to share.

most importantly, he make the lessons easy to understand.

_______________

now I'm actively reading his forum, where graduates like me exchange ideas.

end of the day, our aim is to learn how to fish...and not ask for fish...which i think most people always do when they ask "do you have stock tips"

went 1 talk before, and the definition of TIPS is Truly Its Paid Service

so nobody will be so nice to go into the deep sea, and give you the fish he caught. logical ain't it.

___________

to me, investing is really important as i recognize that Inflation is going to decrease our buying power overtime. With inflation at 4% and interest rates <1%, we are losing 3% annually without doing ANYTHING !

amazing right, never do anything also lose $$

well, you may be right that investing also will lose $$...but that is if you do not take calculated risk.

there is 1 phrase shared by Dennis "investing is not risky, NOT KNOWING how to invest is then risky"

also, i feel that we have limited hours to earn $$, so it's even more important to let your $$ work harder than you, instead of me working harder for more $$.

not possible, as i only have that limited hours per week to work.

i truly understand this phrase after going through some up and down in the market.

so I've decided to pay some $$ as i know it's pretty hard to learn on your own, especially when i do not have contacts with people who are very professional and willing to share.

hope by following his methods, i will gain financial freedom someday!

a good start to 2H2011

2011-07-03T10:50:00.006+08:00

my 1st post for the 2nd half of 2011. it was a good start cos i got my promotion cert and bonus letter over the past few days.

don't get the wrong idea, i am not promoted to a higher position (though i wished to), but it is just a promotion in grade. yea...i believe all companies have these grading system, or some call it rank etc, so appointment is still the same, just that after working for 2 years ++, we are upgraded to a higher grade.

i felt that it was a good form of recognition and appreciation by my organization to the employees. As what my fren MH said in his blog, there can be thousand and 1 ways to motivate an employee, but the best way is definitely through $$$ !!!! hahaha...i can't agree more that statement.

am satisfied with what i have received from my organization over the past few years, and in particular, the bonus given this time round.

________

things that is going to happen in this 2nd 1/2

a) Clear IPPT by October
b) Birthday in Oct (omg......!!!!!!!!!!)

____________

things i wished that will happen

c) Stock mkt continue to rally !!!
d) regain fitness, lose my tummy, build up my muscles
e) back injury 100% recover

___________________

a quick post

2011-06-26T21:59:00.002+08:00

hello....can i find if anybody is still reading my blog.

if you are...pls write something @ my blue chat box at the side....(which is constantly flooded with some spammers which i'm trying to diligently delete off)

______________

time past really fast....and we are heading into the 2nd half of this year.

a review of my 1st half of 2011 showed that it has not been very good :(

________

lets talk about the good thing 1st.

- i've managed to visit 2 countries or to be exact 3, over the past 1/2 yr.

- Feb CNY period went for a 7 days relaxing trip to Tasmania-Australia...haven't blog finish on all the 7 days, but i'll sure do so someday.

- just came back from a work trip to US. my maiden trip to 1 of the furthest country from Singapore. 12.5 + 7 hours of flight is still bearable at my current age :)

___________

about bad things:

- had a freak bizarre injury on my back, 1 of the worst so far, which caused me to be immobile for 1 day and partially immobile for another 3 days.

till today, i'm still living with the muscle scar sustained during that freak incident. lower back will feel sore after sitting for too long.

trying to be diligent to do physiotherapy at home .

- financial portfolio has not been very good, hope the mkt will rally in the 2nd 1/2 of this yr to get back on track.

______________

that's about all...2 good things and 2 bad things...overall still a negative first 1/2 of 2011.

praying for the best in the 2nd half (^^)

short US work trip

2011-06-16T23:03:00.004+08:00

was away to US for a short 1 week work trip, and of course, after flying > 10,000km over to this far far land on the opposite side of the world, i requested to stay 2 more days just to have a short R&R before returning back on reality.

i flew on ANA...it is a 7hrs flight to NARITA, and a 12-13 hours flight to Washington Dulles Airport...

sit till 屁股开花....

i pretty much like the food on board of ANA...

reached my hotel around 12pm...

the amazing thing about time zone difference is when u fly over, u gain 1 day.

i flew on saturday midnight, on a almost 22hours plane, just to reach there 12 hours later.

my hotel room, i book a hotel near to my conference area.

it is very comfortable. got all you need, dryer, ironing board, a/c, tv, microwave, coffee machine etc..

since i reached 1.5days early, i decided to head to the museums in Washington DC.

Washington DC is hot ! even hotter than SG...damn sianz right, fly so far, only to land yourself in a hotter weather country.

just nice the period when we go, there's heat wave in this part...so it was scorching hot..

the museums here are WORLD CLASS museum..no joke..

and they are FREE !!!

there are 2 worthy museums to visit, 1 of the them is the Air (something something) museum...

after this museum, i walked over to Capitol Hill, where the US congress debates and meets

after that make a U-turn to the Natural history museum, this museum is awesome, so much to see, so much to learn over here...

my 1st time seeing dinosaur fossil

_______

on the day b4 conference, i revisited the place...

this time i went to see the Washington Monument..

the Lincoln Memorial

the Korean War memorial...

White house, where Obama stays

_______________

after my conf, i went for 2 days R&R at New york....

once again, it was a solo trip.

1 person, 1 map, 1 credit card, 1 passport....and here i go.....
_____

1st stop, woodsburry factory outlet.

it took 1hr bus ride to reach here, and the bus ride cost like 50+ SGD...i think i didn't buy a lot down here ...nv earn back the bus ride $$ (><)

it is super huge place, almost all the outlets are there, polo raulph, tommy, gap, burberry, AX, CK, etc etc..

shop till u drop !!!!

after shopping, returned to hotel put down stuff, then return to New york times square.

it's damn happening here despite the late hours ....

very beautiful place....lots of billboards etc..

though i feel it kinda waste electricity....

the 2nd and final day, i planned for a series of attractions.

sadly , it was foggy that day, and i cldn't go up to Empire state building, which is the tallest (after twin tower fall)

0 visibility, so no pt waste $$ go up see nothing.

i went to take the simulator ride, called NY sky rider instead...it was good too :)

and tics were going on 50% that day...USD 22 instead of 44.

i took the tour bus, which goes ard Manhattan in loops, save my trouble of figuring out where to take on the subway and walk..

open top bus..so can see more...

went to Ground Zero, where the fatal 9-11 took place...

1 of the towers is on its way up...

a good view of the area...it looks smaller than i thought...

went to WALL street....

touch the famous Bull...super lot of pple crowding to take a photo..

some might as well take frm the bull's backside!

walked south, to take the ferry to see Statue of liberty

the Free ferry was quite far frm liberty island.

so i wasted some to-fro time taking the free 1, before coming back to same location.

then i paid $13 to take the 1 that brought tourist to the island itself

up close with the statue of liberty !

it was drizzling there, strong wind, freaking cold, and i'm only wearing a polo-t shirt !

crap, y the weather in NY so different frm Washington

1 so hot, the other so cold.

totally fooled, so i suffered the whole day, heng nv catch a cold...

the bus took us around, saw the Brooklyn bridge..which i actually wanted to go, but guess the liberty island trip took up too much time...

their chinatown

another tall building in the fog

UN tower

i wanted to go to TOP OF ROCK, which is at rockefeller, but once again, there's 0 visibility, haiz...just now my day...

walked along 5th Ave which is shopping ave...damn shag..cos i attempted to walk frm lower/mid manhattan up to upper Manhattan.

ended up back @ NY Times square again...simply love the atmosphere here...

ok that's about all i have for NY trip.

i keep it short and simple, if got chance, i'll definitely wish to revisit new york to explore more places..

Tassie Day 6

2011-05-29T14:25:00.005+08:00

after a 2months break, i am determined to continue and aim to finish my blogging of my Tasmania Holiday Trip

some past links for reference.

Day 5
Day 4
Day 3
Day 2
Day 0 - 1

_____________________________________________

ok, let me continue Day 6 out of 8.

Day 6, we woke up and had a great breakfast. the breakfast there is really good!

bacon, baked beans, scrambled eggs. spinach, mushrooms.....

along our way to the 1st location, we past by pastures with sheep and cows.

1st stop over, an old cathedral .

the oldest bridge in the entire Australia...build in 1800s.

went to a woodcraft shop...

i bought a few coasters over there, the rest of items are pretty expensive because they are handmade woodcraft from the Tasmanian pine trees.

ok, our 1st official itinerary of the day- BONORONG WILDLIFE PARK

who is fiercer?

this cute little animal is called WOMBAT....seriously this is the 1st time in my life i've seen this animal

cute isn't it?

next up, Tasmanian devil.

come tasmania nv see this animal, how can ?!

it looks like a combination of bear and pig...or shld i say a mini wildboar

they can be quite ferocious, that's y the area is the only 1 that is cordoned off.

Koala Bear !

free roaming Peakcock

lots of Wallabies hopping around.

Tasmanian Duck, they have a unique luminous yellow Beak. i heard it is an endangered animal.

Ostrich...

next up, we went to the Salmon farm. Too bad no salmon tasting for us :S

next up, we went to see the Russel Falls.

a mini waterfall.

what a big fallen tree,

alright, after 6 days of immersion into mother's nature, with endless greenery, free flow of fresh air, beautiful sky and oceans which is more blueish in colour than the sky, we are finally heading to the CITY area !

where you'll see more traffic, more vehicles, more infrastructure, more people etc etc etc.

it's the 1st time we see traffic lights after 6 days...indeed, we are back to civilisation, back to the CITY !

The capital of Tasmania is HOBART. and we are spending our last 1-2 days here.

our hotel, Woodsburry hotel

back to the concrete walls hotel...

after few days of western food, we definitely will head for Chinese cuisines whenever and wherever it is available.

alright, that's abt all for Day 6.

hope i can complete Day 7 soon, Day 8 is nothing much, as it's the day where we flew back

HPA grading

2011-05-22T00:25:00.002+08:00

had my 1st HPA grading today with my vocalist Freddrick today

my ex-music sch, where i learn guitar for the entire last yr, have this program called HPT, Hark Performing Team.

but to qualify to be HPT member, your skill must be very good and stable.

For students who has not reached that standard, we will be put through HPA which aims to let us improve ourselves before deciding if we can qualify to HPT.

anyway, this is the 1st grading we had since joining HPA.

HPT members were also there for grading....

my stupid guitar screw up again, can't plug in, not sure what's the problem.

so i borrowed my fren's guitar.....standard drop 10-20% cause not my own guitar....

anyway, at the end. i think i give myself 60marks...usually will get 70marks..

hopefully dun get C grade, because if we get 2 consecutive "C"s for grading, we are out of HPA/HPT (xx)

mid May'11

2011-05-15T22:23:00.003+08:00

14days since i log in my last post...i think my blogging frequency is decreasing from 1week to 2 week.

let me recap what happened over the past 2 weeks

1) Elections is over !

I'm happy with the results, it was much in sync with my wild guess on no of seats to each party.

i hope that Singapore will be a better place (for Singaporeans) for the next 5 yrs after the strong signal shown in this watershed election.

till now, i do not fully understand the meaning of watershed....izzit cos a lot of people cried during the 9days of rally? hahaha...

2) residue back problem

after 2mths, my back problem has not recovered 100%....not sure why..

physiotherapist said it has got to do with muscles, and recommended some exercises to strengthen the muscles

went to the TCM for acupuncture twice, but not much effect..

think time to change to a better TCM.

few hours to work......and 1 day to another public holiday..shioks!

Happy LAbour Day

2011-05-01T01:20:00.003+08:00

it's officially 1st MAY 2011...Labour day

shall wish all those who are working, like me, a happy (cheap) labour day

= = = = =

7 days to General Election, and this year election is definitely exciting.

i am under Nee Soon GRC, a newly re crafted GRC..

i used to be under Sembawang GRC 5 years ago.

this is going to be my 2nd time voting, i am pretty excited about that.

i can see a lot of discussions online, a lot of articles written, a lot of youtube videos, a lot of exchanges of "views" on facebook etc etc etc.

it is interesting that although we seem united as a country, (at least that's what i seems during national day), but during GE period, we can see all the resentments of the citizens to the garmen starting to pour out macham flood gates, and somehow, the nation becomes politically divided.

well, i must say it's perfectly normal, at least we are glad that we are in Singapore, where pple usually take things in a calm and civilized manner.

by most pple start flaming each other via cyber space or YouTube. now i can truly understand why in countries like Thailand, there're riots over the different groups which support different parties, and in countries like Libya, violence came into play.

= = = =

i shall not state my political stand down here, but frenzs of mine prob know which party supporter am i.

basically, we should agree that there are no perfect garmen in the world (nothing is perfect, same goes for garmen)

so, my vote decision will lie in the score card which i have in mind, the Positive points which i am satisfied with, and the negative points which i am unhappy with, i.e. policies which i think is disturbing me as a citizen.

at the end of the day, i still revert back to the objective of GE, which is choosing the right person, and right party to serve u for the next 5 yrs.

think carefully, choose wisely, hope for the best...

7th MAY, prob 1 of the most exciting day for this year.

"I" stands for? [Part 2]

2011-04-17T19:26:00.003+08:00

"I" stands for...(Part 1)

after close to 3 yrs after i blogged "I" stands for [dated 11 Jun 2008]...i have finally fufilled my desire, my lust, my dream of getting........

APPLE

iphone !!!!!!!!!!

crap, can't imagine within a span of 3 yrs, the phone has evovled from Iphone 3 to 3GS and finally to 4

i was thinking either of getting a BB9780 or an iphone..but thanks to the various factors which i wont elaborate too much, i finally arrive at a conclusion to get an iPhone

really a good phone which makes me even more connected to the world on the move.

can read bloomberg, CNBC, straitstime etc etc etc

will blog abt this in my nxt post...

very tiring day today despite nt doing much

ivan finally in USS

2011-04-02T13:35:00.003+08:00

kudos to my department, we had our last and best welfare event for FY 10 at UNIVERSAL STUDIOS SINGAPORE !!!!!!!

wohooo...

i think at least 2- 3 departments have went there already, and glad that my department had sufficient fund to sponsor each and every of us to USS for FREE !!!!!

i did a cross check with my colleagues, most of them are First time visitors to this theme park, just like me (^^)

_______

some of us met early @ Harbourfront for a hearty breakfast @ Macdonalds...after which, we took the sky train into Sentosa.

seriously speaking, i have not been to sentosa for close to 2 years i think or was it 3? (@@)

we arrived @ USS around 10a.m.

meet up place is the Bullring..

welcomed by the famous USS globe...

my ticket, our grouping were written behind

my department, not full strength yet though

lets capture some shorts before we embarked on our teambuilding

our team building started around 1030 and ended near 2pm

we are given 1 booklet with all the different missions and photos to be taken and done. each with different points

kudos to the welfare team, some pics are really hard to find.

1 of the mission which gave 80 points if u do, and 20 demerits points if u fail to do is to take a ride on Battlestar Galactica!

1 of the photos we need to take...

nice Shrek castle structure.

a nice ship mock up...too bad cannot go up

Mummy

this guy is muscular..got 6 packs some more !

aha...Battlestar galactica ! the iconic ride of USS which was closed down..

i did not take it during the teambuilding session, but on our OTOT trip into USS again, i took it!!!!

took a while to convince myself to take

there are 2 tracks, 1 red, 1 blue

the red 1 is for HUMAN, the ride has a platform on the bottom, so ur legs have something to rest on (but in actual fact, i think only pple as tall as 1.8m can have their legs touching the platform when seated)

it was thrilling...!!!

it went upwards slowly, and nxt instance it zoom down almost vertically, free fall !

we definitely had our hearts in our mouth during that instance....

the blue track is even more thrilling, becos there is no platform and ur legs are suspended in free air!!!

and the track has a couple of 360 degree turns...i really lost track where i am ! haha

and the front part is freaking scary.

it went upwards, and on the last stretch, it accelerated, and immediately, u zoom down almost vertically like the red track.... MAMA MIA !!!!

both rides are a MUST TO TAKE!

the induced fear factor is great !

this is a nice mock up place. which shows how hollywood films are done...

fire, falling structures, 3 D background..holy shit..this is so real !!!!

back to the team building, we ended around 2pm, with the last challenge being to build a structure using newspaper and masking tape, and must be able to support a bottle of water.

the tallest structure wins.

it was a really HAWT HOT day !!!

almost chao- da after baking under the sun for 6 hours!

SHREK 4D is damn good too....

Waterfront performance, any damn realistic performance with lots of fire, pyrotechnics etc

i didnt take the mummy ride as i heard it is jerky and not good for the back ( i just recovered from a back strain recently)...paradoxically, i took the Battlestar instead ..hehehe

i'll be back to take this ride again the next time i come USS

i have the world in my hands !!!!

bb universal studios..

i am truly proud of this tourist attraction as a Singaporean ! good job to build this in SG...

after 3 rounds of walking in USS and almost 8hrs under the sun, we returned to vivo for lunch and back home!

freaking tired, but it was a fun trip

thxs to my dept for having such a great welfare event!

Operation Déjà vu

2011-03-28T23:03:00.002+08:00

embarked on a 1/2 day Operation Déjà vu

for those who don't know what it means, here's an abstract of the meaning from our favorite wikileak...oops, paiseh, i mean WikiPedia

Déjà vu (French pronunciation: [deʒa vy] ( listen), meaning "already seen") is the experience of feeling sure that one has already witnessed or experienced a current situation, even though the exact circumstances of the previous encounter are uncertain and were perhaps imagined.

______

basically, mh and me, went back to NUS today to do something which everybody was "surprised", "shocked", "cross-eyed", "scratch head" all the weird emotions you can possibly thought of, is shown when we told them, we came back to reminisce the Uni Days !

i had wanted to do that quite some time ago, after embarking on my working life!

i reached almost 1/2 hr earlier than mh, and was sitting @ mac (the 1 near engine canteen). somehow while sitting over there, i actually thought i have spent my 4yrs in uni.

was it fun? did i fully utilize it? did i spend too much time studying? did i made enough friends? did i this, did i that?

i couldn't really find an answer.......

________

after a good lunch with mh, and our fellow juniors (who are about to grad), we headed to LT7/ 7a to crash lecture for 45mins or so.

was sitting @ the last row corner. too bad it wasn't a module which we've went through, so the relating portion is missing. can really observe the same type of undergrads there are

some are focusing

some are lost

some are there for the sake of being there (which i belongs to, depending on the module), busy surfing net etc, anything beside focusing on what is being taught in the lecture.

and mh fell asleep! ahaha...once a student, always a student !

______

along the way, we walk along familiar paths, familiar labs, unfamiliar faces (of course!) etc...

_____

headed to my favorite hideout, the CENTRAL LIBRARY...but it is no access to alumni like us..

_______

went to central forum, there's a mini bazaar, not a happening 1 though

__________

went to arts canteen, headed up to BK and sit there to talk cock

_______________

saw some juniors who are still there...say hi, and wave bye............

________________________

took my favorite bus 96 back to clementi

______________________________

although i have left school for 2 years, but this trip back to uni, makes me feel that i just left sch for a few months only....

______________

Operation Déjà vu was really nice! hope to gather more pple and do it once more for the next semester =)

Tassie Day 5 - heading south

2011-03-20T15:22:00.005+08:00

Day 5, 1 of the day where we woke up damn early.

this is because we wanted to catch sunrise above the mountain ridges, right in front of our balcony. imagine staying in an accommodation where you can see sunrise from your living room daily. excellent !

we woke up a bit early, around 0530am , just to set a bit buffer so that we do not miss the sun rise.

waited for like 1/2 hour, the day is getting bright, but no signs of the sun!

we thought we were faked about seeing sunrise from the resort.

but fortunately, around 0615, we saw the Sun rising above the mountain ridges !

ohoooo ! efforts not wasted !

after breakfast, we headed south towards Port Arthur..

along the way, we visited a supermarket to buy some food stuffs.

and went to the fruit farm to pick fruits....pick and eat on the spot..

they have a wide range of fruits. but unfortunately, we only get to pick strawberries, apricots and cherries on the day we went. the rest are either being pluck finish, or still harvesting.

our 1st time experience plucking fruits.

fresh red strawberries. we pluck and eat along the way =)

Michael is joining us too

i wonder how much 1 box of these cost in SG...hehe

me & michael, our guide

our returns !

after having a "fruitful" trip at the fruit farm, we departed the place and head further south towards Port Arthur.

along the way, we visited the Tessellated Pavement which is a naturally formed pavement with tiles liked pattern.

this is the status of the dog which used to guard these areas, to prevent convicts from escaping.

we arrived @ Port Arthur, 1 of the famous tourist attraction.

Port Arthur is like their Changi Prison, where convicts were locked up in here during the old days.

we went on a guided tour, but not for long, as we had to rush for the cruise ride.

went for a cruise ride around the area.

ended our port arthur tour, and it's nearing late noon, which means, end of the dAY ! head towards yet another new accommodation.

here's our nxt accom.

from the outside, it doesn't look fantastic. like a log cabin...

but the inside is ..."WOW"...nice and cosy. practically everywhere and every corner is made of wood.

the kitchen.

the bedroom

the balcony.

alright, that's about the end of the day, shall skip where we had dinner at...heheh...

Day 6 coming soon (^^)

Tassie Day 4 - Wineglass bay

2011-03-15T15:40:00.003+08:00

shall provide the links for the previous days

Day 1; Day 2; Day 3

_______

Day 4, we woke up, and went to 1 of the nicest place in our itinerary - Freciynet National Park.

the 1st part of the morning involves climbing up to view Wineglass bay.

only me and my cousin went for it, as our tour guide advise that the route is tough, and senior pple and children may not be able to climb so easily.

so me and my cousin headed up this 45mins trail.

starting point for the trail

shall take a pic b4 heading up

off i go....

along the way, we saw COLES BAY..not that nice or spectacular

are we there yet???

here we are! wineglass bay...it's very nice !

______________

after the 45mins trail up and approx same time down...the LEE family headed to the freciynet national park.

do take note, the sea is more "blu-ish" than the sky !

after 1 whole morning of climbing up and down and walking, we headed for lunch

it's 1 of the cheapest lunch we had in Tasmania.

$10 fish & chip....!!!! and it's nice..the fish meat is thick..nv play cheat ...

their famous cascade drink

immediately after lunch, we went for some fresh seafood ! raw oysters and lobsters !

while the adults are eating, my niece is happily playing with some children around.. she is really not shy...

after seafood feast, we headed to Kate Berry's farm to buy some jams

alright..

our tasmania trip usually starts around 9 and ends by 5pm.

so after the visit to kate berry farm...we headed to yet, another new accommodation = SWANSEA beach resort

my cousin specifically added this resort into our list of accommodation as we are able to see SUNRISE frm this chalet...

nice and cosy place

this is the view from our balcony..and tml, we'll watch the sun, rise above the mountain!

headed for dinner...and had a great feast..

this above gadget, once ur food is ready, the gadget will flash for u to collect ur food..

my dinner... Pizza with tasmanian wine

here's our feast...we simply ordered too much that we have to ta-bao 1 pizza at the end of the meal

a dormant back problem

2011-03-15T14:36:00.003+08:00

after 9 yrs, it struck me again

came without signs

came without warnings

came without any explanation.....

and what i'm refering to is my back problem

the last time i struck me was in 2002, when i was in JC.

i still remembered vividly that i was going to have PE lessons, and in the changing room, i had a loud sneeze.

the next moment, i felt that my lower back can no longer support me. there seems to be a disconnection between my legs and my upper body.

_________

yesterday, the same illness struck me, in an even bizarre manner.

i was at another company, doing our monthly surveillance check.

everything was perfect just like any other normal days...

suddenly around 2pm, i sat down to check some stuff, and stood up to put some stuff down ( i wasn't even bending or squatting)

and the next instance, i felt an acute pain in my lower back. I knew it is back !!

i tried taking a few steps, and the pain was inbearable, lasting at least 3-5seconds.

so i had no choice but to sit down and rest.

subsequently, i tried to see if the situation has improved, but it was negative.

so no choice, i called an ambulance to bring me to the nearest hospital as i simply could not walk my way out to get a taxi.

(this certainly created some drama, especially i am not in my company)

reached NUH....and since i came in an ambulance, i need not wait any further and was given a bed.

had an injection and 2 pain killers...lie down there till 8pm and got discharged as the doctor say this type of back strain, limited solutions beside pain killers and resting

so might as well go home rest since staying overnight will still be the same.

_______

alright, i'm feeling much better today. i can walk without feeling the pain.

hope i can fully recover in a few more days.

and after this, will visit the specialist and do some physio..

______________

really suay (~@ )

Best of me- Daniel Powter

2011-03-04T22:31:00.002+08:00

omg, it has been such a long time since i really fall in love with an english song..so much so that for the whole day, i've been listening to this song over and over again..

and this song i'm gonna intro to u is "Best of Me" by Daniel Powter.

apparently, it is not a new song..it was in 1 of his 2008 album.

i chanced upon this song when i heard 1 of the Hark Performing Team practicing this song for a performance.

the female vocalist rendition of this song really attracted me to this song....

really nice!

company's 10th yr carnival

2011-02-27T13:21:00.005+08:00

gonna hijack my TASSIE holiday posts for a while for include my company's 10th yr carnival performance yesterday.

back some time ago, few months back to be exact, the corporate side sent 1 email to invite employees to take part in the inaugural talent-time, a.k.a D$T@ X-factor.

1 of the newbie colleague, formed a team with me and another colleague...and as proposed by me, we called ourselves the "RUBBER-BAND"

a lame name, which was inspired by my warrant officer back in OCS days when we also formed a band for some performance.

have practiced like 4-6 times since we decided to group together to represent our dept for the talent-time.

seriously speaking, my bigger objective for joining, was not really to represent my dept

representing my dept was good (can score points if there are any to score), but my bigger objective was to gain some performing experience and to enjoy myself.

______________

here are the photos from our rehearsal on Friday:

here's our rehearsal clip, the actual 1 will be posted soon after i get it from my colleague.

_____________

and here are our photos from actual day performance...still lacking some nicer photos and vids

at the end of the day, we enjoyed ourselves. some minor disappointment and unhappiness here and there, but ultimately, my objectives have been met (^^)

Tassie Day 3 - Launceston to Bicheno

2011-02-26T19:06:00.016+08:00

okie...come Day 3. most of my posts are only 60% complete. i.e i only narrate 60% of what happened during the day.

can't help, cos simply too many photos to load and describe.
___________

we've checked into our 2nd accommodation of the trip on 2nd day evening. it is a nice, colonial style type of chalet-resort.

each room bears a Military personnel name. interesting ain't it. makes the whole place look like an accomodation for the men-in-uniform

my room is Lieutanant Dyson.

it has 3 levels. The top level is actually our bedroom. The middle level (also the entrance level) is the toilet and bathroom.

1 level down is actually the living room and kitchen. my mum was complaining that luckily Singapore nv stay this type of house. need to climb up and down everyday...hahaha

Day 3 breakfast..yummy.. large sausage, large portion of scrambled egg, toasted mushroom, bacon....fruits, yoghut, cereals, coffee etc...

_____________________

after breakfast, we headed to our 1st destination of the day- CATARACT GORGE

we took the World's Longest Single Chair lift

snap shot of my parents gg off for a ride..their 1st time taking such rides..same as me.

our friendly tour guide- Michael Skeggs

my camera sucks when it comes to the green colour. not sure why (zx)

some nicer photos taken by my cousin

we alighted at the opposite side for a quick toilet break. saw wild wallabies around. this is how close to nature we are.

alight, here goes my return trip. my cousin is sitting alone in front of us.

my niece and cousin-in-law (not sure if there's such designation). the ride is not safe to children in case they can't sit still while on board.

after the ride @ Cataract gorge, we dropped by a park to see some Japanese monkeys, took photos with the nice flowers there...and thereafter, we headed towards eastern Tasmania.

nice scenery along the way.

we dropped by Campbell Town for lunch.

they have tiles on the ground which shows the convicts name and the offenses they committed.

after lunch, the Singaporeans shopped @ the leather shop for some nice leather bags/ shoes.

_____________

finally reached Bicheno!

and the first attraction is Bicheno Blowhole (I did not know what BLOWHOLE means actually)

here's what a blowhole is...

a natural fountain

a perfect shot. not easy to capture the timing of the waves.

alright, after visiting the blowhole, we moved on to our accommodation. 1 of my favorite accommodations.

arriving @ our next accom- Diamond Island Resort...super relaxing nice resort ..

1 whole row of accommodation.

the entrance.

they have a bread making machine..

the room is not the biggest which we've stayed, but the serenity of the place is definitely the best among all.

sofa bed for me tonight =)

Panorama view of the outside of the room.

there's a nice patch of grassland at the other side of our resort.

Here's the place we are going to stand tonight...for the penguin tour... our resort is so near the penguin's home

Penguin burrows - these are man made as part of some sch's projects.

at night, we went for the Penguin tour...sorry, no photo taking, so no photos to post.

but it was really nice...

100% NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC.

we witness the penguins coming back home from the sea....they'll stop and rest in between. and they are so cute.

also learn a lot of penguins from the guide...the penguins know how to find their way back...despite gg out several km in the sea daily...

somehow they can find their way back home...smart !

my niece totally enjoying herself at the greeny patch of land outside our resort.

i love this shot !

on the other side of the resort, is the farm....with quite a number of sheeps ..

taking photo of me ???

alright, that roughly wraps up 60% of what happened on Day 3.

the night was damn cold and we all wrapped ourselves for the Penguin tour. As it was near the sea, it was very cold and windy at night.

shall blog abt Day 4 soon...

Tassie Land Day 2

2011-02-19T23:30:00.007+08:00

Day 2, we woke up afresh. Had a very good sleep, probably because we were dead tired after a long flight and day 1.

greeted by Mother Nature, and went around to take photos of our lodge.

breakfast served @ the lodge's own restaurant.

here's a photo of our bus number plate. all TASMANIA registered cars look like this. with the TAS TIGER logo there

has a short walk around our lodge...did not walk too much deeper as we had to get ready to move on with our itinerary for the day.

we only stayed at Cradle mountain lodge for 1 night, loaded our luggage onto the bus and headed to our next destination- the infamous CRADLE MOUNTAIN/ DOVE LAKE

almost there! can see the beautiful peak..can't wait to alight.

wohoo..very nice scenery.

kudos to the cooling weather, the vegetation around all look damn nice.

more beautiful photographs.

after which, we drove down to Cradle Valley visitor center for more nature trekking around the area.

a mini waterfall

my tour guide..an old and friendly guy

that's about all for our morning visit to Cradle mountain. really nice scenery over there.

now we are going to head back to Launceston, our next location. (interestingly, launceston was the place we landed first in TASMANIA)

along the way, we dropped by SHEFFIELD town for lunch.

Sheffield has a small park that is filled with MURALS. i have no idea what MURALS refer to. when i reach the place, i was greeted by nice wall paintings which look very 3D.

here are the photos

they all painted by various artists.

my niece enjoying herself. even the grass looks nice, littered with all the small yellow flowers. kudos to the cool weather.

this 1 seriously look 3D, but it is actually just a flat painting.

interesting sign board

Tassie Land Day 0 & 1

2011-02-19T19:50:00.006+08:00

alright, i am going to start blogging about my 8days tour in Tasmania- Australia.

it also serves as my own diary in case i need to refer to the series of event that happened, in the future.

this is going to be a tough series of blog posts, as i simply have too many photos to share! I had took 1000+ photos using my Sony WX-1 and my cousin took 3000+ over photos with her SONY NEX 5.

thus, in total we had like 4000 over photos over a span of 8 days. I'll try to post as many nice photos as possible, and keep my narration simple.
___________

the LEE family for this tour, comprise of my parents, my uncle & Aunt, my elder cousin and his wife and his daughter (a.k.a my niece), another cousin and me. In total, 8 adults and 1 children.

our Qantas flight was scheduled at 2030hrs on CNY eve, and we meet near 6pm to check in our luggage.

me and my niece KATE, who is 20months only. But she is damn witty, knows how to play iphone, knows how to call our names, and know a lot of other things which i doubt other 20mths yr old children would know.

Tweety bird is joining us too :p

our flight was delayed for almost 1 hour, due to an engine problem (~~). Engine problem for a Qantas flight do bring some worries among the passengers waiting at the Gate.

fortunately, it took around 1 hour before they certified that everything is good to go.

off we go !!!!!!!!

a series of nice in flight photos while on board..

touched down at Melbourne Airport after a 7-8hrs flight.

our next domestic flight is around 3 hours later.

our domestic flight was delayed for an hour ++, the timing keep changing, zzZzzZz.

while waiting at the gate, my niece made friends with 1 boy, who is damn cute and sure will be damn yandao when he grows up.

he is just 1 of the few friends my niece is going to make during the journey. my niece is really friendly and automatically makes friend with children whom she can see on eye level with (^^)

ok, finally the domestic flight is ready to set off.

here is our domestic flight plane

touching down to TASMANIA !

touched down! LAUNCESTON airport

our bus...the vehicle which we will be traveling in, for the next few days.

first stop: Bee Farm...we didn't really go and see how the honeys are being collected. It was more of a shop that sells all types of local produced honey.

after which, check-in into our accommodation at Cradle Mountain Lodge

it is a very nice chalet type of resort. immersed into the nature. love it...and it was pretty cold up in the mountainous area too ('o')

this is how close we are to nature... Wallabies around us..also not forgetting all the "bombs" they lay around the accommodation too =P

alright, that is about all for Day 0 and 1. Real action and sight seeing starts from Day 2 onwards.

I am back from Tasmania

2011-02-11T10:30:00.003+08:00

hello...i am back in Singapore after a nice relaxing 8days 7 night holiday in TASMANIA - Australia.

very nice scenery, cooling/ cold weather, good food over the past 8 days.

will start blogging on my 8days in TASSIE land soon, once i combined the photos from my cousin's camera and mine.

back to concrete jungle, back to reality, 3 more days to work (><)

"兔“年快乐

2011-02-02T00:30:00.004+08:00

i know it is a bit early, but i will like to wish all my friends, and readers of ivanismyname.blogspot.com, a very happy happy Chinese Lunar New Year.

have i told you before that my favorite festival is actually the Chinese New Year. It is a good occasion to meet up with your relatives and cousins.

Eat, joke, chat.

anyway, i will not be around in Singapore this year to celebrate CNY. This is the first time i am not celebrating CNY. Instead, i will spending the CNY with my family and relatives in this ULU ULU place called Tasmania located at the southern Australia.

will be spending 10days 8 nights (effectively only 8 days) over there. By the time i come back, 1/2 the CNY has already past.

will try to catch hold of the time to play mahjong and gather with my friends.

alright, once again, wish you friends 新年快乐，身体健康，兔年能“兔”然发财，事业能步步高升， bonus 拿到不清不楚！

2 x farewell

2011-01-29T19:49:00.002+08:00

bidded farewell to 2 friends yesterday.

first being my colleague - YH (if u are reading my blog, yeah that's u..haha)

kinda sad that my colleague cum friend is leaving the organization, but guess it's inevitable in any organization that people join and people quit.

so it's either me or you who will leave first.

_______

met my JC frens for farewell dinner for Daryl, also my movie kaki..

he's leaving to Adelaide for his 4 yrs medicine course!

damn zhai..study finish B.eng, and now heading for his Medicine course. being a doctor has always been his ambition, and since now got chance, why not.

it's a brave step, but it'll definitely rip more returns in time to come.

all the best buddy.

______

Farewell does not mean we'll not see each other forever, so, keep in contact !

tired tired tired

2011-01-21T23:51:00.002+08:00

another week has past..and this week is really tiring.

1) Monday...have resumed teaching tuition every Monday. not really because of the $$, but more of the interest bah.

the $$ earned from tuition, will subsidize my pop piano lessons (I'll still have to top up)

2) went back to my music sch to attend a 2 hr workshop.

taking part in this apprenticeship program, which will give me more exposure and hopefully, in the midst of going through, make me improve my skills.

3) Wed...took a break, came home to rest.

4) Yesterday, went for an investment seminar at Dbs building. IT wasn't really useful...wasted some time over there :S

5) Today, practiced with 2 of my colleagues for the upcoming company carnival performance. we are playing the song "Just the way you are" by Bruno Mars.

i will be playing the acoustic guitar, another colleague will be playing electric, and last but not least, we have 1 vocalist.

next tues is the audition, and today is the 1st time we officially meet as a group to practise.

Venue of my company's 10th yr anniversary: FLOATING PLATFORM!

time to play my guitar more often in coming days.

__________

counting down to CNY = counting down to my TASMANIA trip..

went to buy spare battery just now at People's Park Complex, really a lot of people there. macham like mini-China (though Ang mo always think we are from china)

AUD price dropped today. Wanted to change $xxxx.00. But ended up, i can only withdraw $xxxx from my bank account. kns.

hope the rate maintains and i'll exchange more $$ tml.

things to buy

2011-01-14T00:07:00.002+08:00

2more weeks to my holiday..

and i still got a couple of items to buy.

1) spare battery for my camera.

it costs more than i expected. but guess i have no choice but to buy

2) cheap and nice sunglass

3) contact lens to go with the sunglass

what else....

think nothing else at the moment

1st month of 2011, spending budget BURST!

in 1 months time

2011-01-03T00:09:00.002+08:00

in 1 months time, I will be heading to this place for a holiday!

Zoom....

nopez, not yet...Zoom Zoom....

nearing....Zoom Zoom Zoom!

aha..but Australia so big..zoom 1 more time...ZOOM ZOOM ZOOM ZOOM!

and finally...zoom zoom zoom zoom ZOOM !!! here it is !!!!

TASMANIA !!!!

it is 1 of the less frequented tourist area for Singaporeans. Usually, Singaporeans will go for Gold Coast, Melbourne, Sydney etc.

will be heading there for a 8D7N holiday with my family and relatives. In total, 8 adults and 1 children (my niece) will be going.

thanks to my cousin for arranging, all the itinerary, tour guide, coach is all ready.

ours is considered free and easy. we managed to engage 1 australian tour guide who will be driving us around the entire tasmania to visit the tourist area.

this is going to be a scenery tour, with lots of awesome sights along the way.

countdown 30 days to TASMANIA !!!!

time to buy extra battery, which cost like $90!!!! ouch!!!

2011 New Yr Resolution(I)

2010-12-30T00:04:00.002+08:00

shall pen down my 2011 New Yr resolution for reference in the future

No 1. ) Grow rich & Stay FIT

- Hope to increase my investment portfolio by 50% nxt yr, and increase my returns. not sure if i want to start FX, chances are that i will =)

- Stay Fit, going to renew my gym membership and target to exercise for at least 2 times a week (including lunch swimming)

No 2.) Increase my skills in playing piano

picking up pop piano classes come Jan'11...hope tat by the end of 2011, i'll be a "zhai" player..haha..

k...more resolutions to come if i think of any worthy to be pen down

new WATCH!

2010-12-25T21:25:00.005+08:00

after almost 2mths of recce-ing..i finally bought my watch!

spotted this nice design @ this shop called "WATCH-IT" in vivo city level 2.

here's how it looks..

think it is a limited edition, which explains why i didn't spot it in City-chain or BHG.

here's how it looks in real life...

ok...no more shopping le....I've lifted my spending curb this mth in line with the festive sales...

time to put the limitation back again after this Dec =)

eat, eat, eat & EAT

2010-12-19T16:35:00.004+08:00

OK..Friday was an eating day...3 meals within a span of 8hrs.

first up, department Xmas lunch @ Bugis Junction V8 cafe. the food was not bad..but the waiting time was bad..perhaps they are overwhelmed by the large crowd.

my department + other customers practically filled up all the tables.

i waited like 20-30mins for my food!

___________

after the Xmas lunch, headed down to the Singapore Mint Toy Musuem for "Volunteer A Day" activity.

i bet a lot of people don't know there is such museum in Singapore.

well, the fact is, it really exist...it is near bras basah complex, opposite to Raffles Hotel.

it is a 5 storey small building by itself. it is so small that you probably will miss the entrance when walking along the corridor..

You probably know that I'm not a "museum-attracted" person..so i just went into this museum to have a look. nothing special beside a collection of toys. Some of them are quite costly too..

a picture speaks a thousand words...so I'll flood u with a few thousand words below...

some of our childhood toys..the marble and skipping rope looks familiar.

aha..this snake and ladder game definitely looks familiar to pple of my age

US$4,000 !!!!!!!!!

remote control peacock

Popeye the sailor man

check out the price tag !!!

ended the volunteer day @ mint toy museum, and headed for a free MacDonald ard 4pm...2nd meals since lunch..

_______

hang around Bras Basah complex..stayed @ this music shop which sells a lot of music score books..and bought 1 Teresa Tang's song book to entertain my parents.

met fellow work colleagues/frens...these are fun loving pple whom i met @ work..some are my team colleagues, some are colleagues who have left, some are from other organization whom we usually work with...so yeah..in summary, they are considered colleagues cum frens.

had dinner @ 1 of the steamboat restaurant in bugis...

duck soup..

hanged out @ TCC after that..

branded goods fall in...(but none of which belongs to me)

went for MJ session after that...quite shag...ended the game ard 4a.m...

a fulfilling day..

12 days to Xmas

2010-12-12T23:42:00.002+08:00

almost 1 week since my clavi came..

so far so good..have been satisfied with the functions and performance of the instrument.

also attended 2/3 free lessons to teach you how to operate the clavi @ Yamaha PS...last lesson will be tml.

i've found my 1st new yr resolution for 2011: to improve my piano skills

last yr...my aim was to improve my guitar..which i think i had achieved over the past 1 yr of lessons (since Jan'10)

for the coming yr..i wanna improve my piano skills...which i believe i will make a more satisfied improvement for this instrument as compared to guitar.

probably due to the yrs of playing and the level of standards which i am vs the level i could possibly improve till =)

my lessons will start on 8th Jan..Saturday...and glad i managed to secure a slot with the instructor whom i met during the trial lessons....hope to learn a lot from him.

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spent 2 x half days to paint my rm....it's blue right now...2 tones of blue..will post some picture soon.

painting a rm aint cheap...i spent around $100+ to paint my room...with 1/2 the paint left =(

else i think maybe around $70 can settle le...but nvm..since the paint is gonna remain for a good 3-5 yrs..i think the $$ is worth it for the colour and effect.

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12 days to Xmas.....enjoy ur last few days of 2010 frens !