rudie the robot

Chengdu Trip

2010-04-15T02:43:00.002+08:00

Hi Guys!

As some of you might know, i went to Chengdu,China to study for 6 weeks as part of Ngee Ann Poly's Overseas Immersion Programme. and that i just returned back. This 6 weeks has been the best of my life yet, as it has thought me alot. nothing much to say and comment about the trip, but currently a feeling of missing the attachement school (UESTC) is present in my heart.

If you have the time, maybe you would want to take a look at the previous 6 posts, as they are what i did for my journal as part of my module to be completed in china.

Have fun reading?

till next time. hahas!

Chengdu Week 6 (5th April – 11th April)

2010-04-15T02:41:00.001+08:00

Day (Date)	Journal/reflections
Mon 5/4	Last day of excursion! Significant events Actually nothing much. Spend whole day travelling back to school? Oh! Bought a crystal for my grandma, for longjavity :D Came back and had a mass washing session! Not technically the most fun thing to do, but at least work is done. Source of encouragement Finally back to school! Miss the hot water for bathing here, and the cool-er temperature. Source of discouragement Ahhhhh!!! The final test for APPG is tomorrow! Im beyond scared!
Tues 6/4	TT2 and excursion to a Singapore company Significant events Did THE test. Till now, I still think the paper is one of the toughest programming paper that I've taken. It was so difficult that I kind of had a headache in the middle of the paper! Thanks ah! MR MA… L Went to NCS, I subsidiary of Singtel. Of cause, it's the brunch in Chengdu. It's good to see a Singaporean (I think his name is William) in Chengdu! He gave us a tour around the office, but for some unknown reason, we left after only 10 minutes or so… which is quite strange to me! Maybe we were too loud there… Went to cut my hair here in china! Not sure if that's a good thing or not. Hope my hair will appear nice in front of other people! Source of encouragement Done with TT2! Relax! Source of discouragement Realized that the IS presentation is on Thursday! And we have not started doing! My fate of my IS grade lies on 7^th April 2010!
Wed 7/4	Visit to the penda zoo, and IS presentation preparation Significant events Went to the penda zoo! As far as I can remember, this is the first time seeing a penda! I feel that I have accomplished something special today! Stayed in the hostel almost the whole day after the lunch to prepare for the presentation. And I'm happy to announce that I've accomplished it! Source of encouragement Officially 1 week more here! Source of discouragement IS presentation? One part of me doesn't what that to happen, while the other part is all prepared and ready to take the stage! :D
Thurs 8/4	IS presentation DAY Significant events Saw the party secretary of the school! From what I know, he is the representative from the central government in the school! An important person in the school! Had the IS presentation for our china immersion experience. All the presentations are very interesting and I enjoyed most of them. Although I think my group's presentation on TRANSPORT wasn't that interesting, I guess at least it was done with some standard? Had a cultural exchange program with another group of students. They organised a "don't forget the lyrics" style competition, which was quite fun? Although I do not know most of the songs, I had much fun looking at the lyrics and singing along. Met more china student? Crashed into another lecture! This time, it was really uninvited, but interesting, as the lecture was on C++, a similar language to what I knew. Although nothing went inside my brain on that day, at least some form of familiarity was in the lecture :D Source of encouragement Finally done with everything here in china! Yay! Source of discouragement Now that there's nothing more to do, what am I doing here still?! Kind of a double edged sward, but I see no point here in china anymore. HAHA
Fri 9/4	Free day! Significant events Surprisingly, I woke up quite early today; at about 9.30am or so… quite strange, considering that yesterday was quite a packed day! Ate brunch at the commercial market. As the days here in UESTC is numbered, I wonder if I will miss the food here huh? Spend almost the whole day in the hostel itself? Yep that's about it Source of encouragement Going back home in 6 days! Source of discouragement Hm… don't really have any plans for the few more days here in Chengdu… how? LOLs
Sat 10/4	Another free day… Significant events Again, woke up early and started using the computer. Mainly to do up a project report, from my external activity Was offered to go to the nearby theme back here, but rejected as I was too lazy. Didn't feel like going out on that day at all (for some unknown reason)! Took a light dinner? Source of encouragement 4 more days! :D Source of discouragement Again, failed to explore the city. Not a very good sign here huh?
Sun 11/4	Third free day in a row! Significant event Normal slacking day? Bought a lecture pad from the school bookshop! A souvenir for me? At least it has the UESTC wording on the top! Again, slacked in the hostel today. Feel so sorry for myself! L Source of encouragement I am able to see my family and friends back in Singapore soon! Source of discouragement Now that I'm leaving, I started questioning myself: will I miss this place? The food? The people? The environment? Sure, there are things that I cannot take it (e.g. the toilet, the showing facilities etc.) but things like their canteen, the fun local students are, from my thoughts now, something I will truly miss.

Chengdu Week 5 (29th March – 4th April)

2010-04-15T02:38:00.001+08:00

Day (Date)	Journal/reflections
Mon 29/3	The main purpose of the visit -九寨沟! Significant events Well, 九寨沟! The place itself is very big and I don't think one can really appreciate all the scenery in one day. When saw the first lake, we were amazed by the water, the scenery and all the other factors that make the place a picture perfect environment. But after going to the next few lakes, they feel all the same. And thus we felt bored on the last few lakes that we visited. Cultural show! It was interesting to see the dance moves, and the singing! Different from Singapore's culture! Source of encouragement The view in九寨沟 is fantastic! Totally worth the trip(s) up. Source of discouragement The fact that I need to meet at 5am tomorrow morning to take the early flight back. That means no sleeping again! L
Tues 30/3	Flight back to UESTC! (with major hiccups) Significant events Ton the whole night talking to my friends. Had a nice time! Never knew u can stay awake without using the computer The flight was delayed for a full 4 hours O_o. it was due to the misty environment, and it was unsuitable to land the plane. Although it was understood that safety first, fun later, but most of us were frustrated as we didn't sleep the night last night. Mass wash clothes! When eating dinner, a fish bone pierced through my tongue! And it bleed non-stop. And when it stopped, I felt like fainting(but I didn't, fortunately) , probably due to the sudden loss of blood. Took lots of energy to get back to the room to rest. Source of encouragement The feeling of seeing UESTC campus after returning is very wired. Something like home, but not really MY home. I guess UESTC will always have a special feeling in my heart. Source of discouragement The fish bone incident? I must really take care of myself! My new target: not to go to the clinic or any doctor in this trip!
Wed 31/3	Last APPG Lecture/lab session! OMG! Significant events First up, APPG Lecture! Last lecture on Arrays was… familiar? I self-studied arrays for my COMPRO miniproject, thus I think I can absorb that was thought easier than my friends Lab session was fun! I love the cracking-my-brains-to-think-how-to-get-it-to-work feeling! The satisfaction I get when my program is completed is good! And, I was the first person to complete the lab session! Felt good! Went to get my pair of specs that I have been thinking to get for a long time. Hope thick black framed glasses will look nice on me! Source of motivation Finally get what I wanted to get for a long time! My new specs! Source of discouragement My group wanted to discuss about the IS topic today, but we failed to. Shall do it tomorrow!!!!!
Thurs 1/4	Final lesson of APPG and IS lecture on history of china (modern) Significant events The last lesson of APPG was to go through a past year paper of Theory Test 2 (TT2). As my friend accidently took the answer sheet instead of the empty copy, thus I referred from my friend and calculated what I got 91/100 for the sample test! Second lesson of the day: IS lecture! The lecturer is a lady whom only spoke Chinese. Because of that, a student volunteer had to step in to translate for the Malay students. Her lecture on china's history was very interesting, and really made us understand how did china come out of monarchy into a democratic country for a short period and then to communist. China, like Singapore, achieved her own peace and harmony. Spent the rest of the day washing clothes and enjoying the nice weather in Chengdu! :D Since its April fool's Day. Of course I was both the "fool-er" and the "fool-ed" party. Much fun from this little day. Source of motivation The IS lecture on china made me more interested in china's modern history, and finally know the importance of 孙中山 to china, as he is also highly respected in Taiwan, which made me confused as they two countries don't see an eye to an eye. This lecture also made me more interested in Chairman Mao and his contribution to china. Source of discouragement Found out that I will be hitting the roads soon L , to hai luo gou. Actually I am not very excited to go for this trip at this point of time, but I have already committed myself to it, and must go! I shall make this trip as entertaining as possible!
Fri 2/4	The big dinner hosted by NP teachers! Significant events Again, woke up late! Why? There isn't a need to wake up early as there wasn't any lesson in the morning (for the matter, the whole day!) Sneaked into my team leader's lecture on management in the afternoon! This module of theirs is somehow like our IS module, where each student can take up a module of their choice, outside their main disciplinary. Thus it was kind of a slacking time for most of the students there. My team leader even did his homework during the lecture! Learnt more about the way UESTC operates as a school from my team leader. Learnt that most modules are thought in Chinese, while the others are thought it English, some even getting from the US University of MIT! An 18- dish dinner hosted by our NP teachers to all students UESTC staff-in-charge, and student leaders. What else can I say? Food stacking up our table, with lots of food left on the table. Source of encouragement I attended a UESTC lecture today! I found it weird that there wasn't any activity to sit into their lecture. Defeats the purpose of coming to Chengdu! But! At least I have been to their lecture. At least once! :D Source of discouragement Not exactly looking forward to the trip to hai luo gou! L
Sat 3/4	Day one of hai luo gou trip! (Should I be happy?) Significant events Woke up early to prepare myself to go on a bus ride to hai luo gou! Was told it is a 6-hour bus trip there. Turned out it was a lot longer! Suffered almost the whole day sitting on the bus. Zzz The food is surprising better than the ones in 九寨沟, with more meat dishes on the table, and non-spicy food! Kind of like the food! I pictured the hotel we are staying in to be of about the same quality as the one in 九寨沟, but I was wrong. The hotel was a lot lower in standard, and it even had a power failure in the middle! Although they claimed that hot water is available from 8pm to 12am, it turned out to be false when I attempted to bathe. In the end, I had to wash my hair in "freezing" water. What I horrible experience! Source of encouragement We will be going to the hot-springs up in hai luo gou tomorrow! It's sure to have some bathing facility with hot water! :D Official 1 month in Chengdu! :D Source of disappointment As Nicolas's room is up on the ROOF TOP of the hotel, the teacher deemed that it is unsafe, thus he had to sleep together with me and roomie. I will have to share a bed with him for the whole night! O_o
Sun 4/4	Hai Luo Gou! Significant events Woke up early, so that we can see the sunrise in the mountain itself. Kind of paid off? Attempted to climb the mountain, but because of the slow ascend to the mountain, we didn't climb all the way to the top. The route up was so slippery! Our shoes could not have a good grip of the floor, and we had to buy spikes for our shoes. Like any tourist attraction. They are ridiculously priced. No choice but to buy from them L Went for their hot springs! Its kind of the highlight of the mini trip! Source of encouragement The fact that I will be going back to the school tomorrow? The living condition is a lot worse there then in school! Source of discouragement TT2 on Tuesday! O_O

Chengdu – week 4(22nd March – 28th March)

2010-04-15T02:33:00.001+08:00

Day (Date)	Journal/reflections
Mon 22/3	Trial lab test(APPG), results for TT1 back Significant events Got back TT1 so happy, as I got high marks for the test! 95/100. Although I know my mistakes and there are still room for improvement, im contented with my results! As a saying goes, "at least I didn't fail!" Trial lab test. It was considered easy for me I guess? I have confidence to get high marks for this module too! Ate dinner with the rest of the teammates again! This time I guess it was better as all four group members were around to eat with us. Felt more comfortable! But! I still do not know their names! I must really remember their names!!!!! Source of encouragement The test result I guess? Although I didn't get the highest (its 97 marks) but I guess its high enough. Source of discouragement Still not comfortable with the team members! Most of them are from AE, and although still trying to befriend them further, still at a slow rate.
Tues 23/3	APPG Lab test, and group member being sick Significant events Lab test! I guess everything was well done, and im certain to get high marks (not the highest though, I know there will always be someone smarter than me). One of the team members fell sick! He is down with stomach flu. This is a wakeup call to treat my body well and don't anyhow eat! The team member vomited in the room! And me and another teammate had to clean up after him, as he was too weak to even move. Source of encouragement Lab test was well done! :D yay for me! Source of discouragement I must take care of my health! Getting sick here in china is not a good idea! It's not worth it for the MC!
Wed 24/3	The hardest APPG Lab to date! Significant events Morning APPG lesson was about Methods, or functions in C programming terms. Frankly, it was boring!!!! Didn't learn anything much. APPG lab was next. The hardest lab till date! It makes me fully concentrated into the program, ignoring questions from my friends. The group mate who was sick is now feeling a lot better! Hope he doesn't vomit in the room again! Source of encouragement The feeling when I've completed that hard lab session is superb! Today is the third week that I'm here in UESTC. Wow! Source of discouragement Three more weeks before I return to Singapore. Not sure if it's a happy or sad thing….
Thur 25/3	Best of both worlds! Waking up late and having lessons. Significant events Woke up late! Not as late as of previous days, but later. Maybe I'm getting used to the schedule here in UESTC. Afternoon class of APPG was a war! Spend 100% of my energy and time doing the enhancement component of Lab 6. INTENSIVE! Went to look for spectacles in the plaza in school. I think I'm going to get a pair of spectacles before I return to Singapore! It's kind of cheap too! Found out that there was quite a bit of potential for the lab program to continue, and this I sat down on my desk in the hostel after lesson to continue to do modifications I want. Felt good. Source of encouragement The feeling when I completed the program additions that I have is great! Source of discouragement Missing home a little? I called my sister to have a good chat with her! :D
Fri 26/3	Cancelled IS lesson D: Significant events There was supposed to be a lesson by a Chinese lecturer, but the lecturer didn't come as his/her car broke down! What an unlucky day for him/her huh? Given details for the九寨沟trip from Sunday to Tuesday. Looking forward to it! :D Went to KTV at night with my friends! Finally some form of entertainment in china! :D Source of encouragement Looking forward to the trip to 九寨沟! It's the first time that I will be taking a domestic flight! Source of discouragement After the KTV session with my friends, I think that my chinese is of a much lower standard as my friends! What happened to the "I would like to improve my Chinese" part of my goal! I shall take the remaining time to try to master the language! Not of the type of writing essays, but for normal real life usage.
Sat 27/3	Trip to WalMart! Significant events Woke up late again! This time I work up early at first, only to see my teammate praying, and I went to sleep as I do not want to disturb him Got a call from my friend from another group, to go out together, as a deal yesterday night after going to KTV the previous day, so yep! We went out! Went to this shopping centre, which has lots of "Singapore" feel inside, is it is managed by CapitaLand! Feels so much like home! And going into the first walmart in my life! Source of encouragement Went out of school for the first time in my stay here! Source of discouragement Can't think of any… is that I good thing?
Sun 28/3	九寨沟 day one! Significant events Stayed up late the whole night (until about 4.30pm?)! we had to go to the airport early for a morning flight to九寨沟 airport! First time that I stay up late in UESTC! Because of the lack of economy seats, I, together with some other OIP students, was given First class seats! It is the first time that I sat on seats of a better quality! The visit to Zha Ga waterfall. Words can't really describe the view, and you got to see it to believe it. The visit to a Tibetan's home for a dinner. They treated us well as guests and although the cost is a little steep at 150 yuan, and the food didn't really justify for that amount, the entertainment and knowledge acquired is huge. Had the best sleep (with a super confortable bed) in my trip to china! Source of encouragement It has got to be the First Class plane ride to九寨沟! Not in a sense that I look forward to the trip (I didn't want to leave the seat after the plane journey is over) but a little reward for going for this trip, and so far, I think it is going pretty well! Source of discouragement This is a little ironic, but the bus ride from the airport to the hotel (including lunch) made me wonder why did I sign up for such misery? Having a painful butt from the bumpy rides and awful dinner made me think twice of my purpose here. As what I always tell my friends, this is overseas IMMERSION programme, we need to IMMERSE into their country to know them better! This explains us living in their hostels and almost living like a Chinese student here.

Chengdu – Week 3(15th March – 21st March)

2010-04-15T02:31:00.001+08:00

Day (Date)	Journal/reflections
Mon 15/3	'Normal' School day Significant moment: Had APPG lesson today Ate lunch in canteen! I think the food in canteen is super filling! With the amount of rice that is given O_O Had food delivered to us in our room! (Fast food!) Source of encouragement During APPG's lab session, I managed to solve most of the problems that my friends face, and I am very proud of myself Realized that results will be on Friday! Results for 1.2, that is. It should be a source of encouragement (for now) Source of discouragement Today's day was VERYYY normal. Let's hope this kind of days do not occur again!
Tues 16/3	Normal lessons again…. Significant moment: The morning's APPG lesson was 20 minutes only! All 4 of us have completed what was needed to do for that lesson already, so we are free to leave! Went back to our hostel to rest and relax. Had the worse lunch EVER! We were a little late for lunch, and thus most of the food is already sold there. We had to eat the stuff that we usually don't eat, and boy it was yucky Had the earliest dinner ever! We bought back out dinner after your lesson at 4pm as we are too lazy to go out for dinner; we bought dinner before returning back to our hostel. Turns out all of us started eating a little after 5.30pm, and yep. That was our dinner Source of encouragement We went through the trial theory test 1, and I did quite well for the open ended sections! Most (if not all) correct! Exam results out in 3 more days! :D Source of discouragement The MCQ questions for the TT1 were poorly done! Only one correct! It made me stop being so proud about my programming (I think I am one of the better students in COMPRO, and then APPG I guess?)
Wed 17/3	Free day Significant moments: Woke up late! Yay! Much needed sleep for me again! Did housework. Swept the floor and washed clothes. Guess what is what happens when I become too bored in the room! Hm this time, doing housework wasn't that bad as when I did in in Singapore when I didn't have a maid… guess I have grown up! Revised for my coming TT1. Not a lot, but I guess its not that I didn't study too… hope I can get good marks (an A grade?) for the test! :P Source of encouragement: Exam results in 2 days! :D :D :D Source of discouragement: I wanted to go to the library to study initially, but I didn't in the end as none of my roommates don't want to. I should have asked people from other rooms to make my way to the library! Shall try to do that soon.
Thur 18/3	APPG normal School day Significant moments: APPG lesson! Played pool again! Source of encouragement: Exam results tomorrow! The pool playing part. I feel happy to play pool as it is one of the things I frequently do in Singapore with my friends! It would make myself less homesick, and make my day a little more enjoyable! Source of discouragement: It's a really simple day, so I guess where wasn't anything discouraging today! I'm quite a positive thinking person!
Fri 19/3	IS day, and Exam Results day! Significant moments: Results of year 1.2 out! I was hugging my phone in the morning to get the SMS from school regarding my results. Sure enough it got a message, and it was really my results. A sense of satisfaction was in my head, as I read the contents of the message to myself, but after looking at my GPA, I wasn't that contented as it has dropped. Vice principal of Ngee Ann visiting us. I was very surprised when Mr Teo told us that NP's vice principal will be visiting us after the IS class in the morning, even thinking that he was fooling us. But when the VP came, I was a little shocked and happy to see him, as he is Mr Foo See Mei, whom happens to know both my parents, and was a graduate from my secondary school. The negotiation activity which the Chinese teachers planned out for us. At first I thought it is a very lame activity, but after going through the whole thing, I think its very fun and was time well spent. Source of encouragement The visit by Mr Foo. It made me feel that we are important here in china, for him to visit us all the way from Singapore, and I will work hard to interact with the fellow students from both NP and UESTC. Source of discouragement I guess it would be the fact what I got a lower GPA for my results. BUT! I shall use this to be a motivation to work hard in my Chengdu trip for both APPG and OIE. :D
Sat 20/3	Shopping day in city area Significant moments: Bought a lot of things! (Well, lesser then the previous time, but still good buys). A pair of shoe, a jacket and a belt to be exact. Had I good time out of school! Um… had meals out of school? Not the usual stuff that we normally eat. Source of encouragement Feels good to be out of school! Source of discouragement The fact that I didn't buy a lot of things in today's trip. The fact that there will not be any more planned trips to the city is just sad. Fear not! I think we will go out of school to shop once more before we return to Singapore! :D
Sun 21/3	Cultural activity! Significant moments: Good sleep again! I just love waking up late in the morning and just think about things till I feel like it. Then again doing too much of that isn't good at all. And if I didn't go for this trip, that would be doing that my whole holidays! Flied kites! Believe it or not, I have never done such a thing in my 17 years of living! Glad that I went for this cultural activity! I didn't want to go in the first place, as I think it was very lame, but I turned out well :D Big cleanup of the room! Washed clothes, mass sweep floor (not that we don't sweep floor every day, but today was more through) and wash toilet (sort of?). Happy! Source of encouragement I've had a good experience of flying kites today! J Source of discouragement I was lazy to go out to eat today, and thus didn't. What a lazy pig I am! :X

Chengdu – Week 2 (8th March – 14th March)

2010-04-15T02:29:00.001+08:00

Day (Date)	Journal/reflections
Mon 8/3	First real day of APPG Significant moments: Had APPG lesson! Lecture is quite boring, I must say. But I think I understand what the lesson is heading, and enjoyed the lab a lot! Called for delivery for our dinner! I think it's really cool for a university to have such a inter school delivery! Ngee Ann should have one too! Source of encouragement I'm finally learning in china! Started to fulfill the last of my three learning objectives in this trip. Source of discouragement I think that the "normal" school days here will be a little boring. I shall try to make it more interesting next time! :D
Tues 9/3	IS lecture on Taoism and APPG Significant moments: IS lecture on Taoism? Personally, Taoism isn't something close to my heart, as I live in a Buddhist environment, where my parents are Buddhists. I tried my very best to stay awake to listen in for my lecture, but couldn't, as I found it to be very boring. But at least I learnt a little more about Taoism! I have always thought that Confucianism is closer knitted into Chinese family values, but I guess it's wrong! APPG- lab session. We did a practical and lab session today! It's about making a t-shirt ordering program. Although I find the lecture very boring (the classroom is seriously too big to have a programming related (hence very hands on style learning) lesson. But, I have to adapt! For only then I can excel in this module. Now reflecting back, this is the reason why I chose a poly route: to have a more hands-on learning environment! Many of my friends say that I should be in a JC, but I always replied that I chose to come here (ECE was my first choice in my JAE) and i have not regret it J Source of encouragement The Practical APPG lesson. It re-ignited my passion for learning Engineering! Being able to complete it and discovering the methods to do it makes me feel very contented. Source of Discouragement The IS lecture. Why? I SLEPT DURING LECTURE. For me, it's a sin for me to sleep during lecture. As studying from books isn't my thing, my only source of learning would be to listen to someone talk and bring life into these "dead" books. I vow not to sleep during lectured again! (at least not in this trip)
Wed 10/3	Free day O_o Significant moments: Work up late? I didn't have a chance to do that for a longggg time since I have arrived again. Maybe it's the cold weather (I don't usually sleep in a air –con room) that the cold makes me sleep even more. And I don't get that kind of treatment when I'm here. Thus a simple thing of sleeping until I naturally wake up is the highlight of my day today! Sorry, I really can't find anything much to tell. I bathed on that day? LOLs ohoh I missed a chance to play basketball today. It would be good to have some fresh air and play some sports, but I guess I didn't! sad Source of encouragement The fact that today is a free day? (if that's even counted) A day to rest up and adjust to the environment more. Source of discouragement The fact that I didn't take the chance to play basketball. Now reflecting back, I didn't take the opportunity given to me to have sports. I didn't achieve what I set before the trip! I shall take this remaining 5 weeks to change myself. (and yes, its exactly 5 weeks more before I go home here)
Thurs 11/3	APPG, plus wash clothes day? Significant moments: During the morning session of my APPG lesson, I didn't get to being the plug converter! This made some inconvenience to my whole group, as they are now unable to use their laptops during the lesson. But this was solved when one of my roomies got a seat closer to the power plug. This made me feel the importance each other is to the group, and responsibilities I have to take amongst each other. Had canteen food for lunch! My roomies don't really like canteen food (after the first meal on 3/3) but they decided to give canteen food a second try. And it turned out good! As what I told my roomies, this is an immersion trip. We should "immerse" into their student life's. Hope we can eat there more often! J Source of encouragement Again, During APPG. I was able to understand what the teacher was talking about although I was kind of slacking around. More and more confidence in this module! Source of discouragement For dinner, we went to the shopping area's restaurant . I ordered a side dish on top of the usual MSG-ful fried rice. Turns out it was not to our liking. And it costs 22 yuan! Everyone in the group had to bear the cost together, and makes me a little disappointed in myself. I shall try to order something to everyone's liking next time! (or just not order any). Hahas!
Fri 12/3	The day before the first outing? Significant moments: IS lecture about Sichuan FOOD! (When I didn't have breakfast that morning). Very interesting lectures, although I think that the Muslim classmates would not enjoy it as most of the Chinese delicacies are pork based. Learnt more about Sichuan! Played pool! First time in china that I played pool here. Had a good time spending my lunch break! Briefing about the trip out of school tomorrow! I think it shall be interesting! (Sorry, APPG isn't in this list as I think it's not a significant moment anymore. It's a part of life here) Source of encouragement The pool session! Definitely! And for some reason, I think I play better here than in SG. LOLs! Source of discouragement My back pains that I'm having now. I can't take care of myself! Hope it will just naturally go away. HAHAs!
Sat 13/3	Outing out of school! Significant moments: Went to places! DuJiangYen and QingCheng mountains. Finally get to go to some places of interests in Chengdu. DuJianYen blew my mind in regards how ancient people can built such wonderful stuff even with such low- tech equipment. I guess its low maintenance too. Also as the QingCheng Mountains are having renovations, I'm surprised how the people there need to hand carry the equipment up to the mountain. I admire their strength! Knowing that the place I've been to today was a disaster zone last year during the 512 earthquake. I guess it's the closest I will be to a disaster zone. Bonded more with my people from my team (team 4)! At least they know my name now! (im bad at remembering names) Source of encouragement The fact that I went out today! Although I (still) have a back pain, I did climb up the mountain with my teammates. Good joy Rui De! Best day here in Chengdu! Source of discouragement I still don't know my team member's names! I shall try my best to remember them! I still have 1 month to do it!
Sun 14/3	Bonding games with UESTC and fellow NP students day Significant moments: Woke up late today! Not the usual 7.30am, but 11am! Wow did some catching up with my sleep: D I feel that it's much needed hahas! Had a day out in school having fun I guess? The games were innovative and we had fun, although I feel like a small kid during that time Had dinner early! Like 4.30pm. gosh! So early! Source of encouragement Made new friends? At least talked. And still don't know their names. Zzz Source of discouragement Found out that we have been eating about the same stuff for the past 2 weeks: fried rice. I need to eat something new!

Chengdu - Week 1 (3rd March – 6th March)

2010-04-15T02:10:00.002+08:00

Day (Date)	Journal/reflections
Wed 3/3	Today is a big day, where I got introduced to my life in the next 6 weeks. Significant moments: · In the Singapore airport, my sister (who was there to send me off) started crying as she was about to enter the immigration gates. This really shocked me as my sister didn’t seem like the type who could cry just because she missed someone. This made me feel how important I am to my sister in her life. · On the plane, my semester one classmate and roommate told me that this is his first time taking a plane, as far as he could remember. These made me feel that I am in a very lucky family who could afford and bring the family to so many places. · Got introduced to the school and my hostel. To my surprise, the school is a very long trip away from the CBD. Going out of the school seemed like a impossible task without the help of trip leaders. Good thing is there is a supermarket and basic facilities like ATMs and food outlets are in the school itself. · The 2 SIM Singapore SIM cards didn’t work. ! I could not SMS back to my family to inform them about my safe landing in Chengdu. Had no choice but to wait for the internet to be set up in my room. Source of Encouragement · My sister. See Sig. moments Source of Discouragement · The weather. It is a lot colder then what I expected. This made me put the thought of going back to SG into my head.
Thurs 4/3	Formal introduction of the people of UESTC to us, and first lesson Significant moments: · Was late for the first meeting between UESTC staff and us. This is what the ECE director told us NOT to do, and we repeated our same mistake. · My groupmate, Nicolas was sick. · Went out to a small town to eat ma la huo guo Source of Encouragement · The first APPG lesson that we attended was quite easy. (I guess) have a motivation to score well for this module Source of Discouragement · When going out to the town, I found out that I do not know most of the people here. Thus I would need to make a lot of new friends to enjoy my time here.
Fri 5/3	First OIE lesson Significant moments: · Learnt more about Chengdu. I always thought that all parts of china are the same, but today, I realized that every province has its own culture. It put what I’ve learn in textbooks of the romance of the 3 kingdoms etc. into life. · Found out quite a nice place (and Singaporean taste) to eat. Can help me when I miss Singapore. · Realized what it is quite boring to be in the hostel room at night, if we didn’t go out. Source of Encouragement · I have finally found some food that I think is nice, although it is a little more expansive than the other food in the area; it is cheaper than in SG! Source of Discouragement · Realizing that I would need to have a lot of persistence to stay through my days in Chengdu.
Sat 6/3	Whole day out in Chengdu’s CBD Significant moments: · At last! Went to their town, or at least went out of the school. This made me realize that China is really big! I think the trip from school to the city centre is almost like the length of PIE itself! · Bonded more with my roomies. Out of the 3 other members, I only know one of them before this trip. The ice is really hard to break, as the other 2, I would dare say, a little softer spoken. What seemed to be a long wait to past time in a café (we kind of finished our shopping at 5pm) turned into a fun time together playing Chinese chess. · Making a last minute attempt to buy a shirt for my friend at the last minute. I saw this shirt, which I think will fit her very well, but felt that she wouldn’t accept it. And didn’t buy at first. But then, since I will only be here in Chengdu once, why not just buy it! It is much better then regretting right? Half an hour before the stared meeting time, I decided to buy it and dragged my friends there to buy! Source of encouragement · I have made my own decision of buying gifts for me and the people around me! This might seem like nothing for some (especially the girls) but being a person who don’t really like to buy stuff, I’m quite proud of myself! (lame, but true) Source of Discouragement · I have failed to take care of myself! My lips were very dry as we left the hostel, but I didn’t turn back to take my lip bum. Didn’t want to hold up the group. But then, the dryness grew and grew, finally, it was so bad that my day out in the town wasn’t that great. L Note: The following things mentioned here may seem small, but, as a saying goes, It’s the little things that make life great! :D
Sun 7/3	Off day ( no activities planned out) Significant moments · Had a good sleep! Woke up at 10am instead of the usual 7.30am. · Went to play basketball with my student leader! First time playing in such a cold temperature! Ok… maybe the first time playing sports in a long time. :P · Nothing much on this day huh? Except that my friend told me that it’s going to be zero degrees on Tuesday. Hope what my friend says isn’t true. Hahas! Source of encouragement · Bonded with my members even more! Hope it will turn out positive and long. One of my members kept singing Source of discouragement · My basketball sucks. And we played basketball today. Really hurt my mood today. Hope I can improve in my basketball!

Hi World!

2009-12-27T02:19:00.002+08:00

Hi! I'm still alive. Although this blog is going to be dead. so let me revive it.

let me just put what has happened this past month in phrases(I'm lazy to type down every event):

Sitex- ASUS
YV campfire- SINGA
Common test- AAA?
Stomach Flu.... vomit and vomit:(
Term break- fun fun fun! + boringgg...
Hol. homework- untouched

Yep! thats about it. boring life huh?

My Grandpaaa!

2009-11-22T16:08:00.004+08:00

This is my grandfather. Handsome right!

hm... not its not his wedding. its a association dinner, and he is the chairman of it. so he must look super nice.

Oh! and he's retiring this year. For this year's dinner, they published a book about their history, since its their 70th anniversary. looking back at those photos i can see him being the chairman for many many many years! (and afew of my photos when I'm little) I can see that he is a great leader in his own way (although i still don't know what the association do after so many years).

Hes my inspiration to work hard :D

short post, as i cant put what i feel to words. hahas!

no title

2009-10-29T23:02:00.000+08:00

General Musharraf, Dr Mahathir, Gloria Arroyo & Lee Kuan Yew were sitting in a train.

The train goes through a tunnel and it gets completely dark for the next 8 seconds.

Suddenly there is a loud kissing sound and then a slap!

The train comes out of the tunnel.

Arroyo and Musharraf are seated across each other, both looking perplexed.

Mahathir, seated across LKY, is bent over holding his face, which is very red from an apparent big slap.

All of them remain diplomatic and nobody says anything.

Musharraf is thinking : ' These Malaysians are all crazy after Arroyo.
Mahathir must have tried to kiss her in the tunnel.

Very proper that she slapped him ! '

Arroyo is thinking : ' Mahathir must have moved to kiss me, but kissed Musharraf instead and got slapped. '

Mahathir is thinking : ' Damn it, Musharraf must have tried to kiss Arroyo ; she thought it was me and slapped me instead. Shit !! '

Lee Kuan Yew is thinking : ' If this train goes through
One more tunnel, I could make another kissing sound and slap Mahathir again !! '

Why?! WHY SO FAST?!?!

2009-10-16T19:18:00.003+08:00

Well, the day has come. Holidays has ended. :( So fast! hahas back to school! class 1A1. hope they are fun loving!

Oh, and I didn't get it. (refer to previous post for more information)

Anyway, anyone interested in buying a pink ribbon to help raise awareness and funds for Beast Cancer Foundation (BCF)? Its $5 for each. find me if u want one :)

cheers people! (and help people in need)

I Hope I Get It

2009-10-10T02:18:00.002+08:00

"God, I hope I get it!
I hope I get it.
I've come this far, but even so
It could be yes, it could be no,
How many people does he...?"

boring day...

2009-09-27T18:31:00.003+08:00

As always, I'm bored. There's only this much of fun that u will enjoy during your holidays, and mine share of fun is over. not I'm just rotting and waiting for school to start. what a waste of time! hahas.

Well, I did try to make my holidays more interesting... reinstalling the operating system on some of my computers. which turn out to be a disaster! now my Eee 901 cant really work well, although it boots a lot faster... and it cant show the battery level! WTH. enough of that.

Now I'm worried... and Furious... and Bored.

And theres... no one to chat with... well, more music!

listen to the music...

Quite lifeless huh?

JVC 8MB MMC

2009-09-20T19:02:00.001+08:00

JVC 8MB MMC
Originally uploaded by ruidetk

People! I found this after digging out finding a microSD card reader. I think my dad bought this at about $50 in 2002! See how did flash memory changed over the years? hahas anyway, im uploaded this photo to flickr right from my N97! and blogging this from flickr! hahas

my new babe :)

2009-09-18T15:55:00.004+08:00

People of the WORLD! Hihi. I'm happy now

1) Exam results are out. i got 2 Bs! YAY! LOLs.
2) IDbadge final report is done. summited. the shit and done and over with. what now?
3) Going to have a very good post birthday dinner ^^

and i should formally introduce my new wife: N97!

when its closed....

and when its open :D

hahas more like a mini laptop to me :)

cheers everyone!

New!

2009-09-09T02:50:00.002+08:00

My new set-up of my table:

My new Headphones:

My New life. It's about to start (I hope)

Work is starting soon! Thursday. Hope I can sell! Project report is... um... needs more help!

Hope everything goes fine...

Life

2009-09-05T01:37:00.002+08:00

How should I live my life as? Approaching everything with caution, and to think of the consequences before doing anything? or Just Do It, and don regret going it.

Which is my type of life?

I'm totally confused.

How will I live my life as? will I live it to my fullest? Will i die a happy person?

hai...

3rd September. 3 good news

2009-09-03T18:14:00.004+08:00

1) Got my Creative speaker (Inspire T3130)for my lappie!

2) Got a job in COMAX (the IT show of sept)

3) Got a donation from someone for IDbadge :)

Cheers!

N97 firmware 2.0!

2009-09-03T12:27:00.001+08:00

Just as i think my N97 sucks, here comes Nokia to the rescue! hahahas

BOO! (someone likes to use this to start an sms...)

2009-08-27T01:10:00.002+08:00

Exams are over. Exams were, I dare to say, Easy. hahas Celebrate finish le. wat to do now?

Current job: IDbadge PR Director. Pay: $0.00. how cool is that? I suddenly feel so much back in time, where I did the project almost alone. hai...

Anyway. I think i will spend my Hols getting a job, and earning some money to cover up the money that i used to buy my phone. its freaking $299.00. hahas. Any lobang?

Why does people want to be attached? only get into one if u think you can face that person for your rest of your life.

Im still bored.... ENTERTAIN me!

D-Day!

2009-08-20T23:58:00.002+08:00

My first exam is in less than 14 hours. worried about it. but... what is there to worry?

Yay! bought new phone. I'm happy to part with my E65, because it keeps loosing reception. but a little sad too. but my new phone is nice! and it will carry on the NOKIA ONLY policy i have. Will not be saying what phone I bought. coz it will make your jealous. See it for yourself and my 20MB data plan don't seen enough!

Erm. ya. EXAMS soon. back to worried mode. HAHAs.

Are friends so hard to maintain?

Wish me luck! And give me all your luck for my coming exams. At least lend ,lar :)

13th August 2009

2009-08-13T01:30:00.000+08:00

hi people. I'm Bored. I should be sleeping. but I can't sleep. So I am blogging now.

My life seem very uninteresting. and currently seem quite aimless. sigh...

IDbadge: seems like my whole life now. more like a full time job. But its doing well (I guess?). Up till now, Raised about $11,100.00. Seems alot right? well, not a CENT goes into my/the group member's Pockets. pity. hahas joking. I feel that I have made something good for at least 1 person. That's one of my goals in life. DONE.

School stuff: Currently trying to tell myself to study for EXAMs. which starts next Friday. COUNTDOWN: 8 Days.

Personal life: its... Wait. its Personal! It shouldn't be up here!

Sigh... Anyway, I'm Happy now. I've just installed Ubuntu on my Thinkpad baby. now it looks so nice! (it dual boots, so i can run back to windows with I suffer from withdrawal syndromes)

There is a question in my brain for the past week or so: Can one be very good friends to some girl who is attached?

I think i should sleep now. its 1.42am.

ciaos

Random Joke

2009-07-26T01:36:00.002+08:00

Got this off some other blog. which i didn't take down the URL...

Once upon a time in Singapore, there lived a happy couple, Mr & Mrs Ng with their 3 lovely triplet daughters; Elaine, Ena & Ella.

The 3 daughters were brought up in a prim-and-proper fashion and when they reached 20, their parents thought it was time to get them married.

So, the parents found them the most suitable “leng chais” (handsome guys). They got married and were preparing to set-off on their honeymoon.

As “concerned” (more like “kay-poh”) parents, Mr & Mrs Ng were curious about their daughters’ first-night experience.

So, before the daughters went on their respective honeymoons, Mrs Ng told them…” Your father and I want to know about your 1st night encounters and whether you were satisfied. Write a letter to us, but so as not to raise your husbands’ curiosity…you all must use a code-name to describe your experiences”.

So, the excited daughters were off.

A week passed. Mr & Mrs Ng got the first letter. It was from Elaine.

They opened the letter and found the word “STANDARD CHARTERED”. They immediately took the newspaper and looked for the Standard Chartered advertisement. “Ah! here it is!”, exclaimed Mr. Ng. The motto for Standard Chartered was… “BIG, STRONG & FRIENDLY” Mr & Mrs. Ng were happy.

A week later, they got another letter. This time it was from Ena. The content was simple. “NESCAFE”. So, again they took the neswpaper and looked for the Nescafe ad. “Ah! here it is. “NESCAFE: PLEASURE TILL THE LAST DROP”. Again, Mr & Mrs Ng beamed with joy.

Another week passed. A month passed. And another. There was still no letter from Ella. The Ngs became worried.

Finally, the letter came. It was scribbled and could hardly be read, but Mrs. Ng managed to figure it out. The code-name was “SINGAPORE AIRLINES”.

Why Singapore Airlines? Mr.Ng rushed to the nearest store and got a newspaper. He flipped the pages frantically. “Ah! Here it is!” Mrs. Ng grabbed the page and read aloud.

Before she could finish. THUMP!!! … she fell off her chair.

The motto was… “7 TIMES A WEEK. 4 TO 6 TIMES A DAY. NON-STOP”.

let me blog this down before I forget

2009-07-13T02:07:00.003+08:00

let me recall what happened in the past 1 week or so...

1)4th July (Sat)-- Hype-Up for River Valley students! It was at Science Centre! Long story why and how it was held there, but it was a good venue! After that we stayed back for debrief and packing of badges for Sunday's first sales! stayed in SCS from... 8.30am to... 8pm? almost 12 hours!

2)5th July (Sun)-- First sales for DHS! I was very afraid that the vounteers will be bullied and stuff, but it turn out well (and no one died). so it was successful! raised about $1.5K :)

3) 6th July (Mon)-- Money counting in Metta Home! That was my happiest day in the project! held on to $1.5K worth of CASH!

4) im skipping Tues and Wed, coz i do not remember anything special happening. Oh Oh Oh i remembered something ! but i don't feel like telling. hahas

5) 9th July (Thurs) went to school for 1 hour only:) My dear Mr Hui wasnt free for some compertition. So lesson canceled. the 1hour is for ELTECH. I do not understand anything the Lecturer said, so I had to go! after that met up my huishan to do up some proj stufff..

6) Friday-- same as (4)... hahas

7) 11th July (Sat)-- Packing day for badges esp. 2. Don't think it needs any more explaination.

8) 12th July (Sun)-- DHS Sales 2! I think the second sales is generally better! Had a great time today! and a nice lunch. hahas (DHS vols, if you are reading this, I sinserely thank you for your support and willingness! you are part of the project!)

That sums it up (i think)

Its 2.25am O_o

To whoever it may concern: I'm Sorry for what I've done, and I will not do it again...

Im bored...

2009-06-28T22:39:00.003+08:00

Quite a number of things happened. where do I start?

1) Its the last day of my term break
2) I have been working in Science Centre
3) There is no extention of break...
4) I'm going back to school tomorrow
5) I'm working like a slave for my project
6) the other members in my project are now preparing for exams (which explains 5)
7) I have quit being the Group Leader of the Project (Don't ask me why. Coz I will tell you if you ask)
8) I have given myself the beautiful position of "PR Director"
9) I will be free on 4th July, when officially step down. and when the other members finish their exams
10) I have tons of things to do now
11) I should not be blogging now
12) bye

Yes, I'm still alive

2009-06-20T23:14:00.002+08:00

Hi people (talking to those X people who goes to my blog, where X should be <1...)

Sorry for not updating for so long... ya.

4th June
Pilot sales for IDbadge was good! we sold all 102 badges that we prepared!

4th June - 6th June
Y2Y was... successful! (coz no one died) learnt alot although i was a Advisor there... (yes, im like a advisor-in-training) only slept like... 2 to 3 hours in that 3 days? (I didnt count in any doze-offs during lesson)

6th June
Hype-up was souposed to be on 6th of June, but it was posponed last minute, as there was lowww attandance. 15 out of 60+?! Come on!
After that went for VSMP in YMCA. learnt about some Excel and accounting stuff... I already know most of it already... so... hahahas
After that, Went out with Hui Shan and Shi Hui to red Dot musem. its free on that day. ya. than after that went to west mall to eat and play pool. hahas. and than sleep. (finally...)

June 7 to 11
Exams week . I think I can get... A for all? (im starting to pray for that now, since its already over) Had Hype-up on tuesday, but I cant go as i have exams. and I was kind of sick on that day.

June 12
Went to SCS with my poly classmates to see the da vinci exhibition. and to see the VS department. e tamp staff are quite good! hahas and it make me look sucky then.

June 15 - today
Start of holidays! And work... Now i know why i love to work in SCS again! hahahas

ohohoh! I will be playing with the Sagway the whole day tomorrow! I think it will be fun! yay! I'm PAID to play!

Its 11.46 already. shouldn't I be sleeping!?
ciao

Project IDbadge!

2009-06-10T11:00:00.000+08:00

http://yfc-idbadge.blogspot.com/

:D

Tanglin e3 camp

2009-06-07T23:52:00.000+08:00

This makes my 2 hours of sleep in 2 days worth it:

http://kellieeeeee.blogspot.com/2009/06/happiest-times.html

This Coming week...

2009-05-29T22:27:00.002+08:00

Sat-- IDbadge Meeting + Badge making+ YMCA-NUS course (YFC proj)
Sun-- Briefing for NP people (YFC proj)
Mon-- School
Tues-- School
Wed-- School + Y2Y precamp + YMCA-NUS Course
Thurs-- Pilot sales (YFC proj) + Y2Y camp + school
Fri-- Y2Y camp + school
Sat Hype up! (YFC proj) + Y2Y camp + YMCA-NUS course

WOW! hahas and i still have school!

hm... I think I'm now back to my own self. no more emo-ing and stuff. Hope that its true! Its almost 1 month already.

I have a meeting to prepare! ciaoz

Keep Moving Forward!

2009-05-19T17:31:00.003+08:00

Sometimes, goodbyes may be bad. But once u have gotten over it, you would need to stand up and continue with your life. and make that a good memory:)

It took me sometime to really accept it and to carry on with my life. and I hope I would not look back to those sweet days.

That's all I have to say for the past 2 weeks or so.

Enough of the past. Lets think of the future!

The next few months seems VERYYYY packed! With Tanglin's Y2Y camp that I am unaware of anything about it, and working during the 2 week break. and YFC. Maybe i should really plan my time now.

Poly life is... getting better and better. with lessons getting harder, and common test coming up! HAHAs I cant live without work of any sort!!!

And, YFC... seems really big! (compared to the one that I've did in 2007) plans are kind of set, and now we are really doing what we have planned! making a 4 page proposal into action is alot harder than what you think!

My life is now goaless

Bring Him Home by Jamie Pugh (Britain's Got Talent )

2009-05-11T00:08:00.005+08:00

This song never fail to make me sad. The story behind this song is just too meaningful. and how its sang by a person with such a background. It touched my heart at the end of the song!

4th May

2009-05-04T11:05:00.001+08:00

1 month ago, I did something I felt stupid at that time.

Today, I didn't regret it at all. :)

first week of school? (kind of)

2009-04-29T19:58:00.003+08:00

the first week of school is... SLACK! All I did is go through the O level stuff. esp PHYSICS... hai.

Anyway, something GREAT happened on thursday! I got an email from YFC that reads :

Congratulations! We are pleased to inform you that your team has been selected to be part of the 100 teams in Citibank YMCA Youth For Causes 2009.

Kind of excited and worried now. Hahas

19th April 2009

2009-04-19T13:35:00.003+08:00

Tomorrow is the first day of school!!!!!

and Friday was FOP for my course. It sucked! hai...

Saturday was fun! Went for YFC interview in the morning, and than went out with my "friend" in the afternoon. To buy shirts! bought 5 shirts and 1 pants. hahahas

Now, I'm slacking. As usual.

My life is quite dry now, without any school. But that'd going to change when Poly Life starts! YAY!

Looking forward to my future!

The Start of endings?

2009-04-06T09:12:00.002+08:00

This is the last week of work for some of my friends at SCS. And Yesterday is the last week of the Magic Exhibition (finally!).

And I'm Leaving Soon too!

Had Dinner Last Monday at West Coast Plaza to celebrate (kind of...). And some of us went to play pool after that!

Tuesday, Work

Wednesday, Work (and April Fools Day, but i didn't fool anyone)

Thursday, NO WORK! Went to go come admin stuff for the YFC project that I'm going to participate. Will blog about my project when it is selected.:)

Friday, Work.
And something else. I saw a letter for me on my officer's desk while looking for the punch card (it was on her desk too). I wanted to open it, but i thought that it would be better for her to give it to me directly. Sure enough, She called me into her office and shake my hand. And passed me the letter. The subject of the letter is "COMPLIMENT LETTER" WTH!? aparrently I assisted a visitor to find her car keys. And found it. And she sent an email up to the CEO. and the CEO past down that infomation to all the HODs in SCS. so now all the top people knows me (I guess?). This is quite an encouragement for me! I shall keep up the good work! (for the next 1 week)
After work, Went out to eat with my friend. Had a very good time! but i think the last part spoiled the moment.

Saterday, Work

Sunday,Work.
And celebration of the end of Magic! had a good chat with the exhibition guides! One of them had got a job in SCS as a Science Educator! WOW!

Thats what I did for the past 1 week or so?

ubuntu 9.04!

2009-04-02T23:58:00.000+08:00

Long time no post!

2009-04-02T13:30:00.003+08:00

Hi! does anyone even goes to this blog?

I think I am working more these 2 weeks or so... maybe my supervisor saw my blog?

Working in Sci Ctr is one of the best decision that I have ever made! The staff there are great! esp. the temp people.

Had a dinner on Monday night to celebrate the end of internship 2 of my colleagues :Patrick and June! And the end of Magic exhibition (in advance, as the exhibition is extended to 5th April)

Almost all the Temp staff came! and by the end of this week, all of them will be leaving... and im leaving on the 12th. Hai... Kind of missing them even before they leave. Esp one person in particular...:)

I must learn to appreciate what I have now! And not regret for not doing anything in the future!

Single is GOOD because...

2009-03-24T22:54:00.001+08:00

I got this from my friend.

Single is GOOD because:
01. Don’t need to worry about your partner betrays you
02. Don’t need to worry about your partner finds you irritating when talking to her through phone or being with her
03. Don’t need to worry about your partner going to scold you
04. Don’t need to worry about your partner is suspecting you having outside affairs
05. Don’t need to worry about your partner is bored when being with her
06. Don’t need to worry about your partner leaving you some day
07. Don’t need to worry about your partner not in love with you anymore
08. Don’t need to worry about your partner sleeping late and resulting myself sleeping late also
09. Don’t need to worry about your partner stepping on two boats
10. Don’t need to worry about your partner will be flirting when you are with her
11. Don’t need to worry about your partner when not being with her
12. Don’t need to worry about quarreling over small things or big things.
13. Can have more freedom to do my own things
14. Can have more freedom to play my computer
15. Can have more freedom to watch TV
16. Can save Bus Fares by not going out with your partner
17. Can save Bus Fares by not sending your partner home
18. Can save money by not spending on birthday present on your partner
19. Can save money by not spending on christmas present on your partner
20. Can save money by not spending on easter present on your partner
21. Can save money by not spending on what your partner wants to buy
22. Can save more time by not going out with your partner
23. Can talk to other girls without getting scolded
24. Can walk with other girls without getting scolded.
25. Can act with my own accord without considering your partner’s ego

Some of them are true (I think)... while others are humourous!
Enjoy!

I'm bored!

2009-03-24T03:56:00.002+08:00

Nothing much to blog about... hm...

Got a new Laptop! did I say it here yet? Got Lenovo Thinkpad T400. Its GREAT!!! The Keyboard is good! And system is good in general. Bought a dock for it too! And a ZeroShock sleeve!

Work is becoming more of a part of life than a chore... and is now alot more relaxed! for some unknown reason

ahhh... i later got work! better sleep soon!

IT show day 4

2009-03-15T21:38:00.002+08:00

hm... how shall I shart...

Met my friend, John at dover to meet up with his father to drive to Suntec. For some unknown reason, We got a parking lot very quickly! (even though there are only 28 free parking lots). Also, we managed to get up to the level 6 show floor even if the show hevent started! Here's proof!

got a Microsoft wireless mouse ($29.90), A bag that looks nice ($35)and can replace the current OP one that I'm using, and 10 back issues of PC mag ($20). and looked for a good laptop for Mr J! Found a HP laptop with a student price! and he likes it!

Went down for lunch(shall not talk about this part) and waited for my friend, Hui Shan and her BF to bring her to brother printers booth to buy printer. Bought from Andy! (wanted to buy from melvin... but... hai... never mind)

After that, met up with melvin... he wanted to go to IT show too, but seeing the crowd, he chose not to go. so after that took bus to my grandma's place to have dinner.

be4 I end this post,
THANK YOU JOHN CHUA JUN ZE for today!

last few relaxing days

2009-03-05T19:09:00.003+08:00

Poly term is starting soon! its been so long since I studied! not sure if I can continue when poly starts. hahas...

more days of working is given to me for the next 2 weeks! which is a good thing! I think... Can't believe i complained about the little days given previously... hahaz

Watched the new movie in SCS, Sea Monsters, yesterday. Was so bored at home! Its a nice movie! and its IMAX! haha

Im working tmr! YAY!

New macs?

2009-03-03T20:46:00.001+08:00

http://www.macrumors.com/2009/03/03/last-minute-specs-imac-mac-minis-airport-extreme-time-capsule-and-mac-pros/

New iMacs?, Mac Minis? Only time will show.......

UNTITLED

2009-03-02T21:52:00.002+08:00

hm... just an update of my life?
Finding SCS to be a nicer and nicer place to be! With nice staff, nice friends, nice visitors etc.
I met another loyal visitor to SCS again yesterday, She's a mother of 2, and I first met her at the Onmi-theater. Came to watch a movie with her younger boy. I was feeling bored, so i made a balloon sculpture for him! talked to the mother for some time before they left. She introduced her name and the son's name to me!

Yesterday, I saw her again with her 2 kids! and she reconised me first! I totally forgot about her already! haha I have STM one...

These Loyal visitors are the ones that keep my job here alive and my work a fun thing!

Something we spoke

2009-03-02T18:04:00.000+08:00

Once upon a time, a man in a hot air balloon realized that he was lost. He reduced altitude and spotted a woman below. He descended a bit more and shouted. "Excuse me, can you help me? I promised a friend I would meet him an hour ago, but I don't know where I am."

The woman below replied. "You're in a hot air balloon hovering approximately 30 feet above the ground. You're between 50 and 51 degrees north latitude and between 114 and 115 degrees west longitude."

"You must be an engineer," said the balloonist.

"I am," replied the woman. "How did you know?"

"Well," answered the balloonist, "everything you told me is technically correct, but I've no idea what to make use of your information. The fact is, I'm still lost. Frankly, you've not been much help at all. If anything, you've delayed my trip."

The woman below responded, "You must be in management."

"I am," replied the balloonist, "but how did you know?"

"Well," said the woman, "you don't know where you are or where you're going. You have risen to where you are due to a large quantity of hot air.
You made a promise, which you've no idea how to keep, and you expect people beneath you to solve your problems. The fact is, you are in exactly the same position you were in before we met, but now, somehow, you've managed to make it my fault!!"

Black Friday, Valentines Day and Total Defence Day

2009-02-16T11:38:00.002+08:00

See the 3 days up there? I have been working all these days.

Friday was kind of unexpected, as I was called up last min to go to work, as one friend of mine at work is sick, and I need to cover him. YAY! extra $$$ for me! haha

Black Friday turned up to be the best day among the 3 days. Saw a familiar face guy. He came on Thursday before to inquire about the Magic exhibition. AND HE CAME TO SEE IT THE NEXT DAY! I was having my lunch break on when i saw him, so i gave him a personal tour of the exerbits. and when he left, I asked him to comment of staff (MY) service in SCS, and he gladly wrote it for me! MY first comment card! YAY!

Saterday- worked at the onmi- thrater, only to see couples holding hands going for movie... hai... and something bad happened too... ALSO, THE GUY I SAID ON FRIDAY CAME AGAIN! This time with his wife! So he came to SCS 3 days in a row! YAY!

Sunday- worked in SC turnstile! VERY busy! nothing much to say about sun, but to the kids who like to go to waterworks to play: PLS DO NOT STAND ON THE EVERBIT AT THE CORNER AGAIN!!! WE NEED TO GO ALL THE WAY THERE TO STOP U!!!

Today- slacking at home! nothing much la... but there will be work for me tmr!

boring days ahead...

2009-02-10T10:54:00.002+08:00

I got my duty roster yesterday during sharing session... WORK FOR ONLY 3 DAYS A WEEK?! How to earn money like this?! hai... and now nothing to do at home lor... hai...

Monday...

2009-02-09T11:56:00.002+08:00

It should be my rest day, since SCS isn't open on mondays, but I need to go back in the afernoon for some sharing session thingy... hai... but I do get paid! Yay! getting paid for sitting there and listening to people talk!

Anyway, I just found out that I need to work on the 14th of Feb! valentines day! So sad... But on the other hand, I also do not have anyone to go out with what... so its kind of good rite? hai...

Petition to lower transport fares (for poly students) working?

2009-02-08T01:00:00.003+08:00

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/407434/1/.html

Kind of happy about this article!

boring day turns pannic!

2009-02-03T22:39:00.002+08:00

The previous post is written too early...

I was bored, and than after disovering that my hard disk has about 30GB of free space, I decided to play around with it, by installing Windows 7 beta.

So, I must partition(sort of like cut up the C drive) the hard drive first. using the windows Vista disk manager should do the trick, but it didn't. Kind of got an error...
I than partitioned the hard drive by a third party software... and it worked

Next, I booted to my Win 7 installation DVD... but it seems like its not really working. So I booted back to Vista. But guess what! Vista also cant boot! It will just remain in the boot screen... thats where the pannic starts!

Immediately, I booted my old Dell computer that have been left untouched for years. installed some workable software and started to solve the problem...

after poking the internet for infomation and worrying, found out that its a bad disk sector. used Bart'sPE boot into Disk Check, A Windows DOS programme and solved the problem!!! YAY!!!

this lesson is lind of important to me, as i must appiciate what I have now! and not to be greedy! Vista is ok for me... I do not need Win7

BORING!

2009-02-02T10:03:00.002+08:00

So bored now! have completely nothing to do! maybe I should take out my TYS to do later...
Found my previous blog! and i thought its extinct!

http://ruidetksite.blogspot.com/

have a look and see how stupid I was then!

My future is SET!

2009-02-02T01:10:00.002+08:00

this week seem important for 2 reasons:
1) My poly course is set! I'm going to Ngee Ann Polytechnic's Electrical and Computer Engineering! Although its a very-easy-to-get-in course, I'm still excited the second I read the SMS sent by MOE!

2)Received a letter forom CPF about my new CPF account! YAY! I'm offically a working person! And its my first ever contribution to the government's ever increasing money to invest! LOL! But I know that I will be getting this amount of money at the age of 55! or is it 60? Or 65? maybe 70 during my time...

Anyway, I finally got my SCS access card! so no more waiting-forsomeone-to-come to open the door!

I'm really bored right now! no one to chat with, as most of them are schooling/working/not online, and it would just be me and my laptop the whole day for the next 2 days!(I'm not working for mon and tues)

O levels posting results

2009-01-30T00:29:00.002+08:00

hm... I don't seem so scared this time, compared to the O levels results... maybe its because I know that I will get in... maybe its because I'm too lazy to think about my future... or maybe I've got a clear view about my future... I think its the third one.

The results will be out at 8am, and its 7.5 hrs more!

So, I've been waiting this day since... before the mid year exams of last year? Ya... I planned for my future studies so early. From there, I got my own targets to follow. I think I hit about half of them? its quite of a good target set! and no fails!

its my 3rd week working in SCS I guess? I think I am doing well! And there a 3 new temp staff in the department! 2 girls and 1 guy I heard. hope we can get along together well!

Nothing much to blog about... I'm not the fiction person... not even my own life! how lame is that!

Oh ya! finally some JC students came to the SCS for lessons today! Something new to the primary school kids that arrive daily!

Ciao

CubeCheater

2009-01-29T18:51:00.002+08:00

This is the first Apple iPod touch/iPhone that i feel that is useful, Although its am app for a lazy man. Its USD0.99 Cheap. Enjoy!
(If you bought the app, do tell me! I want to try!)

Boring day....

2009-01-28T15:53:00.002+08:00

I'm not working today. Not scheduled to.

Slacking all day... Maybe I should go somewhere when I am free...

But I have school tomorrow!

Happy CNY!

2009-01-26T19:44:00.003+08:00

Its the first day for Chinese New Year!(YAY!) and i have to work!(erm... yay?)

Worked in the station i hate so much... magic entrance... For some unknown reason, I don't seem to hate it so much now! And I hope that I will start to love it!

Worked with Siti again... and had my fair share of fun...

She was dragged out of the Magic entrance by my boss after lunch, and I am now a one man show! and I seriously can't make it.

There were people going in and out of the exhibition hall, I am unable to catch all of them, allowing some to slip inside. apparently the back door is not locked, and some people also went into the magic exhibition from there.

I have learnt many things from this very day, making this Chinese New Year a unforgettable one!

The deadly magic exibition

2009-01-24T17:53:00.000+08:00

I was stationed at the Magic entrance today. Its my first time. Seems like a easy job to do, but its alot harder that i thought.

I have to ensure that only people that went for the magic exhibition bought the tickets for it. TOUGH!

And the feeling of turning down someone who has the normal gallery tickets to enter the magic is terrible!

And there are no chairs around for us to sit down there! So we must stand for all of the 7 hours!

How I hope that i do not need to be stationed there again!

and the magic performance that is tied up with the magic exhibition was sucky today! Saw groups of people going to the visitor service office to complain...

bad day!

I Love Metta!

2009-01-23T22:16:00.002+08:00

Hi everybody!

Today I went back to Metta home with another attachment-mate, Linsay . Spent Quality time with the DAC clients, and went to play ball games with the male residents. I love being in Metta: the clients are fun loving, the teachers and staff nurses are very approachable, and the supervisor is a great man! thanks John Tan for allowing us to do down today!

I think almost all the DAC clients can reconise the both of us!(which is a good thing, as we can better communicate with them) yay! i think i should not name them here. But those that was at attachment with me would know who i charish most there (hint: its the "Can't See" client)

This one day visit to Metta has thought me quite some things, and how i should treat my free time wicely from now till end of march. It also given me passion to my work in SCS.

I hope i can go back there sometime soon!

Rushed down to SCS after that for night shift at the onmi-theater.
nothing much to say about that... haha

I've got work tomorrow! So i better sleep early!

Ciao

Lenovo W700ds

2009-01-22T18:28:00.000+08:00

Hope this can happen to me one day! LOL joking only la...

WANTED

2009-01-19T23:32:00.001+08:00

http://www.mrbrown.com/blog/2009/01/man-wanted-by-interpol-for-making-one-too-many-vsigns-in-photographs.html

good tactic by Singapore government...

FUN!

2009-01-19T20:23:00.003+08:00

Went to "work" today. Its not really a working day today as we are having a Sharing Session Day. But we are paid to sit down and rot! So its a working day.

Its the first time that I see all the VS (Visitor Service) people, and they are all girls! and its those aunties... only like 6 from my generation. And very little chio bu... so sad... LOL!

erm... dad is discharged from hospital today... hope my mom can stop worrying so much.

there is work tomorrow! but I only need to report there at 4.30pm, and ends at 8.30pm.YAY! first time of a night shift.

And after reading my previous post today, I seem so emo... I'm fine! Just that i will understand the importance of friendship from now on.

These post are getting more and more boring aren't they?

I love you!

2009-01-18T22:43:00.002+08:00

Something happened today that made me feel that i should love the people around me.

My dad fell down the ladder today, and was hit on the head. His head was bleeding. He was rushed to the hospital. I was not there as I was at work.

This very incident had made me realize the importance of people around me, and how can they impact me when they aren't around. although he is OK now, I don't know why I feel so much now.

This is quite a meaningless post to you, but this is how i really feel now.

MORAL OF THE STORY: love everyone around you, and live each day as the last. (appreciate what the person is doing even though he is like your enemy)

Thank You!

2009-01-14T12:19:00.003+08:00

I don't know why, but i have a sudden urge to do this post. Maybe I'm too bored at home. I only need to go to work in the afternoon today as the supervisor is not free to train us in the morning.

Anyway, I want to thank my teachers for teaching me for the past 4 years of my Tanglin life , esp Mrs Koh (for both maths subjects), Kuan Kuan (for geog) , Miss Chai for SS (I really appreciate the extra lessons that u gave the weaker students) , Chinese teacher Mr Tie for the great Chinese guidance. and many many more teachers that have thought me.

Also, i would thank My tuition teachers (I know it seem weird, but they do help me right?) , Chem tuition Ya Lin, and my dyslexia teacher Xiu Fong (I hope I spelt that correctly?).

Of course, this is just a small snip of my great thank you list...
I really disappoint my chem tuition teacher of getting a B3 for Chem!

I think I should bathe and get prepared for work!
Ciao!
(PS: I still feel that there is an error in my Chem results!)

Day 1 of work!

2009-01-13T22:09:00.002+08:00

Yes! The day right after I get my results, I start work... Crazy right?

Got a job in Singapore Science Centre as a *pulls out my email* Front line operations! Its the personnel u see at the ticketing and inside the exhibition.

Actually, its not really start of work yet la... today till end of this week is training. the supervisor is a very kind lady! and I'm happy to work under her!

hope that this will be the start of my science centre journey!
(P.S. pls don visit me until next week can? feel ps one)

D-Day!

2009-01-12T21:51:00.000+08:00

erm... I did my best! Although I think some subjects could have been better, like:

CHEM & PHYSICS!!! both of them are B3... HOW CAN THIS HAPPEN!!! My sis hates physics to the core and got B3 too!!! I really feel that my chem should have been better. Maybe I should request MOE to check the paper again?

COBM.Humities!!! I got a A2!!!! and I thought I would fail... But seriously, I was at the verge of failing for my prelims la... and A2 for the actural one?! stop kidding me!

Well, Maths was expected, A2... but A Maths wasn't! i got a B3 for it! quite good concidering that I did not pay much attention to it even at the very end.

And Bio... hit my target of B4... did not put much effort either... PUT ALL ON CHEM LA!!!

English... hm... kind of expected and unexpected. my grade have always been that way, C5 to C6, but i had a light of hope that I will do better with the extra time given... guess my standard of english will always be that ba... its a close call from failing though...

Lit... didnt really bother abt it la... Im happy with C6!

Well, overall, im not happy with my Sciences, but what can I do now? And I must he proud of whatever I do, good or bad.

One Day More!

2009-01-11T18:56:00.001+08:00

hm... this song really describes how I feel right now!
Especially the last part!

"Tomorrow we'll be far away,
Tomorrow is the judgement day

Tomorrow we'll discover
What our God in Heaven has in store!
One more dawn
One more day
One day more!"

I've worked 4 whole years for the results tomorrow! And this will determine my future! Hope My O Level results will turn out fine.... :)

Poly!

2009-01-05T12:03:00.002+08:00

Hm... O levels results will be out anytime now... regardless of the results, i will be happy about it! Coz i noe tat my future will be bright(i think)... Engineering and/or Business! I put "and/or" as there's a new course in Singapore Poly called Engineering with Business" or something like that.
hm... maybe i should put down my course choice and explain them one by one.

1)Engineering with Business (SP)
this one is self explanatory. combination of the 2 biggest things in my life. But mom says that the course isnt quite solid... like neither A or B. and this is a new course. will it be reconised by unis and companies?

2) Logistics Management (NP)
Maybe to me, its very literesting. L some how love doing things that doesn't get reconised. which idiot will buy a product and say "thank you (logistics company here) for shipping this product here". lol (this is also the only course is in my list of DPA)

3)Electrical & Electronic Engineering (SP) & Electronic & Computer Engineering (NP)
these 2 courses are quite similar to me. and its quite stright forward. just engineering!
(I took NP's ECE AEM course back in sec 3, so this might give me an advantage)

4)Integrated Events and Project Management (SP)
This one will bring me closer to the MICE industry. and is the toughtest. So i put this course in KIV.

5) Psychology & Community Services (NP)
This course only came interested to me after my attachment in Metta home. The Day Activity Centre supervisor, John was my inspiration. but the cut off point of this course is like 10 points?! so maybe i will put that inside if i become crazy and/or score very well.

hm... the engineering courses acturally have quite high cut off points, so i'm sure that i can reach it.

yeh... If you have read the post and have not updated your blog, take a minute or two to do that! (esp. if your last post is on the 1st of Jan... u noe who u are...)

yeh... nothing much heppened today la... except that I sent off my sis and mom to taiwan just this morning... will be damn bored for the rest of the week... anyone want to watch movie/ play DS/ anything?count me in!

Convert your Media here!

2009-01-02T11:02:00.002+08:00

found this cool thingy on this website:
http://www.mycreativefansite.com/2009/01/creative-zen-online-audiovideo.html

lt;pamp;gt;Your browser does not support iframes.&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;br&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;

2009!

2009-01-02T10:33:00.003+08:00

It all seem so fast! I thought 2008 will be a long year with the big Os, but its all over!

hm.... we should look forward... 2009... seems like a year that I still don't know what will happen to me... which course in polytechnic will I take? how will the new environment change me?

I actually never thought this day will come. Me leaving Tanglin Secondary... It seem like only yesterday that I went for sec 1 registration.

But hey! we should not think of the past right?

Something has been bugging me for the past few months... What's my purpose in life? This thought came up to me after watching Avenue Q... where this young university graduate (which has a BA in English) is now finding his purpose in life... I kind of like the first song they sing at this musical.

"What do you do with a B.A. in English,
What is my life going to be?
Four years of college and plenty of knowledge,
Have earned me this useless degree.

I can't pay the bills yet,
'Cause I have no skills yet,
The world is a big scary place.

But somehow I can't shake,
The feeling I might make,
A difference,
To the human race."

That's kind of what i feel after my last paper, the Biology MCQ. I kept asking myself, what am I going to do after all the celebrating and stuff? Sit down there and rot?
This main character in the musical tried very hard to find his purpose in life, but still did not get meet his goal at the end of the story... and this is how I feel till now.

"PRINCETON:
Why does everything have to be so hard?

GARY COLEMAN:
Maybe you'll never find your purpose.

CHRISTMAS EVE:
Lots of people don't.

PRINCETON:
But then- I don't know why I'm even alive!

KATE MONSTER:
Well, who does, really?
Everyone's a little bit unsatisfied.

BRIAN:
Everyone goes 'round a little empty inside.

GARY COLEMAN:
Take a breath,
Look around,

BRIAN:
Swallow your pride,

KATE MONSTER:
FOr now...

BRIAN, KATE, GARY, CHRISTMAS EVE:
For now...

NICKY:
Nothing lasts,

ROD:
Life goes on,

NICKY:
Full of surprises.

ROD:
You'll be faced with problems of all shapes and sizes.

CHRISTMAS EVE:
You're going to have to make a few compromises...
For now...

TREKKIE MONSTER:
For now...

ALL:
But only for now! (For now)
Only for now! (For now)
Only for now! (For now)
Only for now!

LUCY:
For now we're healthy.

BRIAN:
For now we're employed.

BAD IDEA BEARS:
For now we're happy...

KATE MONSTER:
If not overjoyed.

PRINCETON:
And we'll accept the things we cannot avoid, for now...

GARY COLEMAN:
For now...

ALL:
But only for now! (For now)
Only for now! (For now)
Only for now! (For now)
Only for now!

Only for now!
(For now there's life!)
Only for now!
(For now there's love!)
Only for now!
(For now there's work!)
For now there's happiness!
But only for now!
(For now discomfort!)
Only for now!
(For now there's friendship!)
Only for now (For now!)
Only for now!

Only for now! (Sex!)
Is only for now! (Your hair!)
Is only for now! (George Bush!)
Is only for now!

Don't stress,
Relax,
Let life roll off your backs
Except for death and paying taxes,
Everything in life is only for now!"

Another thing that caused me to think of this long term goal is the visit to Metta home... in case you didn't read the last post, Metta home is a intellectually disabled home.
The clients there are very happy when they see us volunteers go to their home... and always managed to say greet us when we arrive and leave the home. We volunteers may be their motivation to make up every moring for that 2 week period.

Im i going to do nothing and expect things to happen? or am I going to make things happen? I have chosen the second one.

hm...have any of you thought of YOUR purpose in life? or am I the only one that is having this useless thought?

....And I have not found my puropse in life yet! can someone enlighten me?

My first post since the Os

2008-12-14T21:19:00.003+08:00

hm.... quite a number of things have happened since that faithful day of 13 November 2008: IT show job and the Youth volunteer Involvement Programme(YVIP) part 1 and 2 hm... seems quite a lot though...

IT show: sold TOSHIBA laptops... under Harvey Norman.... Must thank Zhi Xiong for the job... he introduced that job to me... sold 17 laptops within that 4 day period... and that 12 hours of standing per day repeating myself every few minutes have thought me many things in life... and have learnt to appciate those salesman/ woman who have to go through this every day... made a few mistakes... like giving customer the wrong model of laptop ( he came back the next day to change) and almost giving the wrong price for a laptop...
Oh ya... I also sold 1 laptop, Qosmio F50- AV530, even though we do not have that on display! The customer came to me to ask for that model. I told them to have a look and feel of the laptop in the other booth and get their best price from there. Told them that I will try to match down the price. I thought that they will not come back liao, but no! The mom and son came back to me, ( I think because i put down my chop with my name) and they said that they decided to buy that model. I asked boss the best price for that laptop and found out that the offered price is lower than the other booth! The downside is that they will need to collect it from Harvey Noman Parkway Parade a few days later ( I think they stay in CCK). I got a higher com. for the laptop as its more expansive!
And i got a souvenir working there...

lol!

YVIP part 1-- Camp: erm... learnt many things too! esp with a very good trainer whom I know beforehand... The best camp that I've ever attended!

YVIP part 2-- Attachment: i am attached to a Intellectually Disabled home, metta home. totally change my attitude towards the disabled in general and im sure that this programme will change my life!

Still got about 1 week of attachement. Hope I can learn more from my trainers and the staff there itself!

Ubuntu 8.10!

2008-10-28T11:11:00.001+08:00

Its never too late to post this!

Creative's birthday gift to me!

2008-09-14T21:46:00.001+08:00

http://nothingbutcreative.blogspot.com/2008/09/15-off-storewide-creative-marina-square.html

enough said...

Prelims!ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh...

emaths and amaths tomorrow!

hope i can do well...

Cnet review of Creative Mozaic

2008-08-08T18:14:00.000+08:00

Ubuntu founder Mark Shuttleworth: We can surpass Apple in two years

2008-07-24T19:05:00.000+08:00

Ubuntu founder Mark Shuttleworth has big dreams for Linux. That shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone who's been following the progress of Ubuntu, which releases a major update every six months and keeps getting more and more user friendly. But user friendly is just the beginning. Shuttleworth wants Linux to be prettier too. In fact, he's calling on open source developers to make desktop Linux more attractive than OS X within 2 years.

Shuttleworth's remarks came yesterday at the O'Reilly Open Source Convention, or OSCON. Open source developers have been making great strides in this area recently. Many Linux distributions include support for Compiz desktop effects which add a bit of visual bling to the desktop experience while also making things like switching virtual desktops a bit easier. And the developers behidn the KDE desktop environment have scrapped the Windows-like interface of KDE 3 and replaced it with a whole new paradigm in KDE 4 -- we're note entirely convinced that KDE 4 is easier to use than KDE 3, but it's certainly prettier.

On the other hand, it's a bit funny to hear Shuttleworth talk about making Linux more beautiful. After all, Ubuntu is frequently mocked for its default dull brown color scheme. But the operating system and its user interface are already extraordinarily customizable.

What do you think? Is it possible for desktop Linux to become as "beautiful," and user-friendly as OS X within 2 years? What would it take? And keep in mind, it's not like Apple is going to just sit still while Linux developers are working on the challenge. Who knows what the Mac OS will look like two years from now?

From: http://www.downloadsquad.com/2008/07/23/ubuntu-founder-mark-shuttleworth-we-can-surpass-apple-in-two-ye/

Will This ever happen?

ZEN Mozaic

2008-07-24T18:19:00.003+08:00

This is Creative's third new MP3 player in 2 weeks, starting with the ZEN X-Fi and then the ZEN Krystal (and for some reason it only apperaed on the Creative HK website) and than this! this is said to the the ZEN V replacement and its cool...

More Pictures in this website http://nothingbutcreative.blogspot.com/

I think I would be buying this first, before buying Zen X-Fi... as this is cheaper that the other and is more worth it for what I'm doing (listening to music... only) i think i will be getting this tomorrow, on Friday the 25 July 2008... maybe i will do a unboxing video and a little review...
well, gtg! bb!

UPDATE: i think the ZEN Mozaic is for left handers! just like ZEN V Plus!

InfraRecorder Smoking Aero

2008-07-21T15:41:00.002+08:00

Isn't this cool! I hope this is real... I have ditched NERO for this open source software.

http://infrarecorder.sourceforge.net/

gAttach!

2008-07-07T21:39:00.002+08:00

"What is it?

gAttach! allows you to easily attach files to new messages in Gmail or Google Apps Mail. All the features available in Windows that were once only available to your desktop mail-using friends are now available to all Gmail users."

I Find that extremely cool! Come on, who uses Windows Mail (or Outlook Express) to check their email?

http://chris.wood.name/gAttach/

Zen X-Fi!

2008-07-01T18:14:00.002+08:00

"Since we opened in 2006, we've been the first place to leak just about every player that Creative has released. We first told you about the ZEN X-Fi a few months back, and now I might have an actual photo of it. So without further delay, I present to you the Creative ZEN X-Fi:

(Click to Enlarge)

Is it real? Of course I can't confirm that right now, but it was sent to me by the same source who first told me about this player (and the Zen Share). The look of the player is fairly similar to how it was described as earlier. It was said to be similar to the original ZEN in design and with a "silver backing", which we can see is really chrome. The chrome edges does give the player an iPhone-esque look, which I'm sure was intentional.

The ZEN X-Fi has the same control layout as the original, but adds 4 buttons along the edges of the D-pad. The SD-card slot is also located on the bottom this time (actually it's not! read below). I don't have any other specifications for this player, but I hope to get that information soon. As usual, everything posted here is a rumor, and will remain so until Creative confirms it. I want to know what everyone thinks about this device. I personally think it looks classy, but for some reason it just doesn't look "real" to me. We'll make sure to update you when we find out more.

Update: Creative confirms the Zen X-Fi, Plus features revealed

Well that was quick. A few hours after I revealed the image above, one of our members searched Creative's site and found official confirmation of the ZEN X-Fi. It comes in the form of a "ZEN X-Fi Starter pack" which is chock full of information about Creative's new player. So here we go.

From the user guide, we know the following:

The picture above is the real deal:

(Click image to see what those numbers correspond to)

That slot at the bottom that I thought was a SD-card slot is actually a built-in speaker! The SD-card slot is still at the top. The power switch as you can see is located on the back of the player Like the original ZEN, the X-Fi will have an FM tuner and Voice recording.

WiFi is built-in - WiFi will be used for

a.) Instant messaging. You can set up an account with Creative that will allow you to chat with contacts from Yahoo! Messenger and Microsoft Live! (aka MSN Messenger). The 9 buttons in the picture above will be used for typing, similar to the way you'd use a cell phone for texting.

b,) Wireless Streaming. You have the ability to connect to Creative's "Public Media Server" or to your home server to play or download files directly on the player.

There are two X-Fi settings:

Turning X-Fi on and off appears to be menu based. There are two options: X-Fi Crystalizer, and X-Fi Expand. Here's the official explanation for both: X-Fi Crystalizer intelligently restores details that were lost during compression of audio files. It makes audio richer and clearer, delivering sound that is closer to the original quality.

On the other hand, X-Fi Expand gives audio a realistic and natural feel. It moves the sound away from your ears and repositions it in front of you - as if listening to a live performance on stage. X-Fi Expand works best with your earphones or headphones.

Creative Centrale - A better software solution

Creative has created a new all-in-one program called "Centrale". It looks and performs much better than its predecessors from my little time with it. It supports your music, videos, and photos and even appears to have options for DVD ripping.

Do all players have Wi-Fi?

One interesting tidbit was found when checking out the Wi-Fi section of the user guide. At the top it states: "This section applies to ZEN X-Fi players with wireless LAN features.". That seems to imply that there are some models that will not have WiFi built-in. Considering Creative is known for making multiple versions of the same player (e.g. Zen V and V Plus), this wouldn't be a surprise. In fact, that's likely the reason the player is named the ZEN X-Fi and not the Share, nor the WiFi.

I'm so happy to see all this information confirmed so quickly. That's a good sign that this player is ready to be shipped. I have a good feeling Creative will officially announce the player within the next month or so.

The ZEN X-Fi appears to be quite feature-packed, but I'm not sure it's the features that people actually want. Chatting is nice, but this player isn't the most practical for it. Cell phones are perfectly fine for that. I am glad to finally have X-Fi on the go. It's been years since we were promised an X-Fi player, and now that time has come. Hopefully it doesn't kill our battery life.

There's still plenty more to learn about this player, and we'll have that info for you as soon as we get it.

LINK (via Our Forums) "

http://www.epizenter.net/comment.php?comment.news.396

This is THE player I've been waiting for! a creative mp3 player with the built in X-Fi technology. This will be their killer MP3 player finally adding something new to a typical mp3 player.

I hope this Player will be cheap enough for my to buy it, as this beast has Wi-Fi in it too...

gtg
CIAO

The night before school reopens...

2008-06-22T22:39:00.002+08:00

What a holiday it has been!

Did i spend the hols well? I'm proud to say that i have! Spending the first few days of the hols preparing for my chi written papers was the most concentrated since... Kindergarden? Well, I'm not that sure, but i felt that i have done my best for it and have no regrets (i noe tat its been quite some time, but i must mention it coz my chi isn't tat good and my dad have been always telling me tat after my o level chi, i wouldn't be even touching much of tat subject any more, which is quite true, from the first month...) the next two weeks after the may 26th "killings" are a series of lessons that we as students can die from it... The real hols started after tat, and my family and i went to phuket, thailand for a short trip... And came back just in time for the pc show... Went with melvin and bought a 1gb micro sd card for his ttds and some backdated pc mags to add to my collection of pc mags since jan 2005... Haha, call me a geek! Dad also went there to recontract our singnet plan... Its now a 2 in 1: home internet and mobile broadband!

im also glad to say tat i have finish all* of my hol hw(*all that i remember/ want to do) went with melvin to library to completd our hw...

Well,i have spend my hols and acturally, i am quite excited to go back to school...

oh ya, before i forget... TECH NEWS:
iPhone 3G is coming to singapore... By Singtel... Besides having 3g, it also has built in GPS and now starts at a low US$199 for the 8gb model...
Firefox 3 is out! Over 8 million downloads of it within the first 24 hrs, setting a new record

well, gtg bb
CIAO

Apple Store Singapore Down!

2008-06-10T00:57:00.002+08:00

3G iPhone? or is it just attack of the "Post-it Note Gang"

Also, Al-Gore is in WWDC ! maybe the new iPhone is Environmentally friendly...

Twitter!

2008-06-07T00:22:00.002+08:00

I've started trying out Twitter on my blog! It's free!

"Twitter is a free service that lets you keep in touch with people using the web, your phone, or IM."

Its like a micro blogging messaging service. This will surely be useful to me as i am usually too lazy to blog or gets too distracted to do it. hope this thing can keep this almost blog from death.

Firefox Download Day!

2008-05-31T01:40:00.001+08:00

Go check it out! be part of the firefox movement! Set a World Record!

Update Tuesday! (or is it Wednesday?)

2008-04-30T23:13:00.002+08:00

Every last tuesday of each month is Update Tuesday for Microsoft (but its based on US time so it is 12 to 13 hours behind us, crossing into the next day. So Update Wednesday will be more suitable)

But Today's update is much more signficiant: Windows XP SP 3 is out!
XP SP3 will be the last SP for Win XP, the longest ever Windows in history!
All of you must be very lucky to use such a old and reliable OS, right? (*I'm using Vista!*)

Also in the other side of the OS wars, in the Linux Camp, the all new Ubuntu 8.04LTS is out!
(LTS is Long Term Support)

In software news, AVG 8 is out! and now it has Built-in Anti-Spyware support!

Wow so many software updates in a small period of time!

In some interesting news, Creative ZEN spotted in Red (and Pink)!
those prople who are jumping for joy that there is a pink ZEN, dont put your hopes too high... the appearence for the pink one is like a TOY! Believe me!

alright thats all Folks!
CIAO

Ubuntu 8.04 LTS

2008-04-21T15:32:00.002+08:00

www.ubuntu.com

Ubuntu 8.04 is out!

I have been ROCKED!

2008-04-04T18:24:00.002+08:00

i went to watch the musical "we will rock on wednesday, 2/4. it was FANTESTIC!! Must watch... its super funny at some times and the plot is rubbish... but the meaning behind the stupid plot is real and alive, even today...

Its setting is in the future where rock and roll is baned on planet "Moll" and is controlled by a orginsation called "GlobalSoft".... sounds like M$ soft right? you can find out more from wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/We_Will_Rock_You_%28musical%29

I love it so much! i wanna watch it again!( if i have the money.... its $50 per ticket... and thats the student price!)

Lack of competition sends Blu-ray player prices upward

2008-03-13T11:34:00.002+08:00

"Late last month, we actually posed the question of buying a Blu-ray player now (being that the format war is over and all), or waiting things out until prices sink and Profile 2.0 players flood the market. Aside from the PlayStation 3 -- which is actually priced fairly reasonably if you were in the hunt for a new console anyway -- it seems as though HD DVD's exit has actually caused Blu-ray player prices to creep back upwards. Granted, this is about as far from surprising as it gets -- after all, it's nothing short of supply and demand working its magic. Still, it wasn't too long ago that we saw Toshiba actively putting pressure on the Blu camp to reduce prices in order to stay competitive, and now that said pressure has vanished, stickers on the whole have headed north. Ah well, it's not like the consumer didn't ask for this, um, right?"

From : http://www.engadget.com/2008/03/12/lack-of-competition-sends-blu-ray-player-prices-upward/

i have been expecting this thing to happen after i heard that HD-DVD lost the war... look at memory stick, it cost so much more than the others. take for example, a 2GB m2 card by sandisk cost $38 while a 2GB microSD card by Sendisk cost $16.60.. why the price difference? they are about the same size and same brand but why does the price differ so much? i call the difference in the money "Sony Tax"....

another classic example: Vaio computers/laptops... overpriced laptops that cant compete with other brands...

TSA can't believe MacBook Air is a real laptop

2008-03-10T22:46:00.001+08:00

http://www.engadget.com/2008/03/10/tsa-cant-believe-macbook-air-is-a-real-laptop-causes-owner-to/

have a good laugh at this article.... moral if the story: do not bring your macbook air to the airport...

Eee in colours!

2008-03-08T23:55:00.003+08:00

"Anyone waiting until next year to purchase the entry-level Asus Eee PC 2G Surf ($299) will soon have a new decision to make: Pure White, Lush Green, Sky Blue, Blush Pink, or Galaxy Black.
As evidenced by the image at left, when the lowest spec'd model (2GB, 512MB RAM, no webcam) hits online retailers in early 2008, it will do so with a splash of color. And if the product pages at EXcaliberPC.com and AllAsus.com are to be trusted, it would appear that the Eee PC 4G ($399), which began shipping last week, and the other models in the series have been spared the spring-inspired pastel treatment. Since the 4G is currently available in white and black, it is likely (though not definite) that the 8G and 4G Surf will be as well. "

From: http://www.pocketables.net/2007/11/asus-eee-pc-in-.html

As seen from above, the eeepc also comes in pink, green, blue and the original black. the 3 other colours are acturally small changes from the white. the only difference is just the top of it, where the colour is not white. the 3 other clolurs only comes in the 2G surf edition... that means the "hard disk" of this computer is only 2GB, has a shorter battery life and does not have a webcam.

For those who did not know, i went to the TI show 2008 yesterday and today... i went with my primary school friend and his sec. feiend to see see look look.... bought a internal USB port extender from bizgram for $15and a 8GB SDHC Class 6 card from best bargain for $58.90 for my Eeepc... it is now 12GB!

than after that i carried on to window shop at the level 6 hall for small and cheap goodies after thay left... haha... wanted to buy a bag for my sisiter but did not know what colour she wanted...

for the second day, i want with Melvin and Andy to hoot things for Mel... He got a Wii game and a thumb drive and got to see her sis in action, promoting some device to save electricity... than Mel and i went to eat cos Andy's dad did not allow him to saty back... than after tat i wnt back to have a"round 2" of window shopping.... walking aimlessly until 9.00pm when the pa system keep asking us to leave the halls...

than i went home and sleep

Ciao

Some Creative news!

2008-03-04T16:46:00.002+08:00

When you release a player at half the price of its competitor, people will take notice. That's what has happened with the Zen Stone, as Creative has just put out a press release saying they've shipped 1 million Zen Stones to date in Europe. Though this is nowhere near what iPods sell in the same time frame, it's still an impressive amount for Creative. The Zen Stone Plus has been just as popular, with about 600,000 units shipped so far. Over the last year or two, Europe has been Creative's strongest area for MP3 player sales. I don't know if its due to marketing or brand loyalty over there, but whatever it is Creative definitely needs to do the same in N. America and other regions.

LINK

taken from http://epizenter.net/

i think Creative have done a good job of creating cheaper and simple MP3 players to the masses. instead of buying a no brand MP3 player from Sim Lim Square, he or she cn now buy a cheap(and trusted) MP3 plyer from Creative. i think the price point of the Zen stone Series have triggered Apple to lower the price of its iPod shuffle and coming out with a new 2GB edition.

i heard form the same website as above that there will be a new MP3 player from Creative featuring Wi-Fi, touch Screen and even their own technology, X-Fi. I have been waiting for this feature to be included in mp3 players for some time already. i would mean that i can listen to high quality MP3 music on the move. ialready have owned one creative speaker and a sound blaster PCI card and sounds great! Cant wait to get to see this product.

Got To Go! ciao

P.S.: i am blogging using my trusty Eee XP

Eee PC!

2008-02-28T22:09:00.003+08:00

Sorry for not blogging for a while.....

Remember the eee pc (the $600 mini laptop ST reported on late dec)that i've blogged about? Well, i've bought it... and reinatalled windows xp onto it using a Thumb Drive as it does not come with a CD crive... it weights 0.92KG... and thats about the same as a science textbook. this allows me to bring it to school more often than my current laptop... i can say that is is a thrusted brand .... ASUS, the brand of the laptop is a well known one in the IT industry. It even built smacbooks for Apple... the best thing is that its only $598!!!

for those of you who hevent een the laptop, here is a pic of it:

14.1" laptop, Eee PC, Nitiendo DS Lite
They are all black!

You can go to this website to compare the Eee with 2 other thinkpads

this laptop is perfect for me as i normally use computers to surf the net and to do some light work(e.g. edicting word documents) dont think about using this laptop to play and high grafics gaming of any form

As thing thing has only 4GB of flash disk, and has a built in SD slot, i intend to buy a additional 4GB SD card to put my data on it.its only $38!

The Eeepc is so popular that SONY is Scared of it! A big Jananese company afraid of only one product made by a Taiwan company? thats really something!

To learn more about this wounderful and cool computer, u can go to http://www.eeeuser.com/

P.S.: i do not get any forms of commission for selling or advertising this product!

Did you Know--

I'm in the airport!

2007-12-20T05:51:00.000+08:00

Erm... Ya... Me in airport... Im blogging in Airport... Btw,the link tat i posted is an article about a rumour of creative coming out a voip device... Sounds lame rite? But think about it, creative has already a company called qmax doing wimax and is part of the wireless@sg ...
well, my flight gate is open already... Maybe i can continue at doha(im stopping over there... Before going to zurich...and starting my to to europe...)

im going overseas!

2007-12-19T22:12:00.000+08:00

... decided to blog tomorrow in the airport via my trusty nokia E65...

some creative stuff found on the net:
http://www.engadget.com/2007/12/19/creatives-inperson-wifi-video-phone-outed-by-fcc/

blog updated!

2007-12-18T16:45:00.000+08:00

hey! went to the blog to add a button to my blog , so i might as well blog about this.

The added button is to promote to put an end to DRM (Digital Rights Managment). heres a link to the wikipedia article of it: Linky. for some time, many online music shops have been selling music with DRM in it. but when iTunes music store started selling DRM free AAC songs, many others followed. It does not affect me much (I dont think you are too...) as i do not purchase music from the internet. I rip them... (after buying them from cash converter).But think of this scenario: You bought your whole library from a online music store(e.g. iTunes) and you are not allowed to put that song in more than 3 computers. Is'nt that bad?

Since we are on the topic of iTunes, i might as well recommend some free software that will improve your itunes experience:

1)iTunes Agent- enables many non-iPod MP3 players to be used with iTunes

2)iTunes Art Importer- ITunes Art Importer is a plugin for Itunes that downloads album art from Amazon.com and saves it within the music files ID3 tag.

3)PhoneTunes- control iTunes from your s60 phone(i know that this is mentioned, but this is worth mentioned again)

Have anyone heard of the ASUS EEE pc? you should have if u have read the home section of the newspaper(18th Dec 2007) Yes... the $600 laptop($598 to be exact)(thats for the 4G model, i will explain that later)I have been eyeing for it since its first appearence early this year. It does not come with windows XP but a distro of Linux(i am also a fan of Linux).Though so, ASUS does provide drivers for windows and has plans to have a model of the EEE pc in windows xp. It can boot into linux in less than 25secs... yes, your eyes are not playing tricks on you... 25SECS!! the reason why it can boot so fast is due to its storage drive. it does not have the convensional hard disc drive but a flash drive. this really speeds up the computer to pull out infomation from the storage drive.Here's a link to a video of it booting

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=57b-Oqs3UCk

Imagine you are doing a presentation (or interview) and you suddenly pressed the shut down button. you will just have to waste about 1 to 1.5 minutes for the computer to turn off , on it again and find that file. And not about 5 minutes(i think).SWE-ET!

And im going to Europe for my late holiday soon!(20th to 30th December)

P.S.: My Internet Explorer crashed while i was typing... thank god blogger had a autosave funtion ... and saved my tired hands from typing again...

32GB ZEN CONFIRMED!!!

2007-12-01T00:15:00.000+08:00

as above...
link: http://crave.cnet.co.uk/digitalmusic/0,39029432,49294537,00.htm

now ZEN is in : 2GB, 4GB, 8GB, 16GB, 32GB.

Now thats threat too apple and the mp3 industry...

there are reports that there will be a X-Fi MP3 player. FYI X-Fi improves your sound quality to CD and even better quality... X-Fi is the newest sound blaster by Creative...

Creative updating their MP3 players

2007-11-22T18:00:00.000+08:00

Zen Stone Plus: there is now a 4GB edition

Zen: RUMOR-- 32GB?! WOW! this could just be a threat to iPod nano and even iPod 5.5G

er... have not been updaing my blog for some time....

i have bought my first current generation MP3 player ZEN V Plus!!!
i bought it from i guy whom i met in the forums and he slod me his 6 month old zen v plus for $100 ($49 off the reatil price)

Nokia Wireless Presenter!

2007-10-21T23:51:00.000+08:00

i was looking for a free wireless presenter today on the internet and i found the right software for it.... im so happy now!

http://mosh.nokia.com/content/379183464B5803F5E040050AEE044DC0
for nokia S60 3rd ed. phones... and myphome, E65, is one of them

Make full use of your dead laptop battery

2007-10-19T16:20:00.000+08:00

wonder if it works...

Revive A Dead Laptop Battery

the day of truths

2007-10-18T20:42:00.000+08:00

Got back all my papers liao... not very contented as i did not score above a B3 for any subjects...

English:53/100
Chinese:52/100
E Maths:62/100
A Maths:59/100
Comb. Humanities:44/100
E Lit:36/100
Physics:51.5/100
Chamistry:42.5/100
Biology:56/100

The Good News: Judging from these results, i CAN promote to Secondary 4 Express as stated on the school diary

"Grade 6 or better in EL and 2 other subjects-- Promote to Sec 4 Exp"
"Grade 6 or better in 5 subjects--Advance to Sec 4 express"

The Bad news: My L1R5 score is 34 and my L1B4 score is 26.... i will still be hot soup...

Anyway, I had a Choir meeting with the EXCO com. (Sha and Sya) after school... planning for the coming camp and had many good ideas from them.... but spend most of the time gossiping about things and laughing around... i think we spend 30% discussing and 70% chatting... sorry!

just had news that Mac OSX 10.5 leopard is shipping on the 26th of october... considering very hard if i want to switch to mac...

Tip of the day: Windows Vista-- Press windows key + X to open Windows Mobility Center (for all except home basic )

Ballmer describes relationship with Gates as husband+wife brings wrong images to our minds

2007-10-15T23:02:00.000+08:00

read it!

http://gizmodo.com/gadgets/microsoft/ballmer-describes-relationship-with-gates-as-husband+wife-brings-wrong-images-to-our-minds-310740.php

Virus=Windows

2007-10-14T10:19:00.000+08:00

go to the allpe website and screach virus and this is the result:

check it out!

Should I Downgrade?

2007-10-13T00:48:00.001+08:00

hm.... I have been using windows vista for some time already... but i am still not satisfied about its performance. should i downgrade to Windows XP? or switch to Linux? or get a mac?