Life's · a · stage · ...

After the recent NFK fiasco, Singapore charities are suddently brought to the limelight. Maybe it's a good thing.

I met up with purifiedgold last Friday at Buona Vista MRT. (I bought some R.E.M. CDs from her -- cool stuff! Her collection included Document, Reconstruction Of The Fables and Eponymous!) There was this two ladies at a tiny booth, clutching what looked like a laminated pamphlet and a clipboard with forms. They were generally ignored by the after office hour crowd rushing from the bus stop to the MRT station.

After getting the CDs, I allowed myself to be stopped by the little lady. She introduced herself as Shu Ping. She asked me if I have heard of Club Rainbow and proceeded to walk me through her four-page, A3 sized pamphlet. She's signing up donors for their donor programme. The donations are directly deducted from the donors' credit card accounts. You sign up for either a $30, $40 or $50 monthly contribution.

I signed on the dotted line that day because:

1. I think kids with chronic illnesses should be given a shot at life, especially if the disease is not a life sentence. It's not right that they're denied the right to live because the family can't afford the right treatments.
2. Shu Ping claims that they have not been activiely soliciting for funds since the Class 95 days .. that was like, 5 years ago?
3. The charity is currently running on a deficit for the past 3 years, hence the need to go out to solicit for fresh funds.
4. One of the things I kept telling myself that I'll do once I start work is to find a charity I'd want to support.
5. I think they're a pretty decent steward of the public's monies, judging from their setup that day: there was a lack of glossy pamphlets, "thank you" gift vouchers or tempting lucky draw prizes. Just two tired looking staff who were not too tired to reach out to just one more member of the public.

Let's face it. At the end of the day, we give because it makes us feel good about ourselves. And I think it's okay. I think of the countless times when I kept telling myself that someday I'll do this (insert good cause here) or that (insert another good cause here) but never got round to doing it. It's about time I started doing something about it.

This is for Chris. Just in time, too.

I hope you'll feel right at home here in Singapore. ;-)

In the spirit of National Day (think "my Singapore my home") I'm putting up Singapore snapshots on the blog, for posterity, I guess. Pictures are taken on a whim with my trusty Motorola V303.

(From top to bottom, left to right)

1. That's Ang Mo Kio Central, taken from a quiet spot where I can sit and watch the world go by. This is a typical neighbourhood central. I've grown to like it, especially old neighbourhoods like this one. It has a certain character that's missing from its younger cousin in Toa Payoh.



2. Singapore still has many tiny plots of empty grassland, like this one.



3. A real life chicken! And a pretty handsome young chap too. You can find this rooster and his friends (a bunch of very well-fed chickens, ducks and geese) at this primary school in Bukit Gombak, right opposite Little Guilin.



4. Voted the best sushi by YZ and I! We saved this for the last and took various pictures of it, too. Heh.



5. Al-Azhar Restaurant, along Upper Bukit Timah. The tissue prata here is da best!



6. Al-Amin Restaurant, also along Upper Bukit Timah road. I'm a relatively frequent visitor here. They have all my favourite food: A sumptious couple's meal for $20, tom yam seafood soup, nasi goreng kerabu, black pepper steak with potato wedges (I swear this one is really good!!) and of course, the all-time famous Milo Godzilla! :-) Check out that funky looking green kebab on the extreme left!



7. This is why I like the NIE library - quiet, airy and has a great view of the quadrangle. I absolutely love the tall, tall ceilings, don't you?



8. Saturdays are my laundry days. I love the smell of freshly-laundered clothes. Apparently my kitty loves it too. She's happily plonked on my towels. Sulk.



9. The illusive Diet Dr Pepper. Supposedly a sight for sore eyes for the homesick American. Now we can truly declare that Singapore IS a metropolitan city.

It just occured to me -- that I'm working because it's something that I can do to occupy my time.

It definitely isn't because of the money. My pay sucks, I don't get OT pay and besides, I'm not supporting anybody with my current pay, I don't intend to get hitched in a hurry, et cetera.

I decided that I'm just too blur about office politics to be bother with climbing the corporate ladder.

I don't need a pat on the back from my boss, but I'll work real hard to impress people whom opinions matter -- well, to me at least.

I put in long hours at the office just to get things delivered on time. I love what I'm doing now. But it just hit me today as I was walking to the MRT station: That I see what I'm doing now as just something I do, so I devote my time and energy to it. It's just another activity .. a project, if you like. I just don't see it as, well, work.

Weird. But I hope I don't change.
:)

Most people have a place they go to when they want to be alone with their own thoughts.

This is where I go to. I love the tall tall ceilings and the large windows overlooking the quadrangle. Will miss this place when I lose my student priviledge *sobs*

Lizzie says I'll make a great mom. That's not the first time she said it.

I still find it hard to stomoch. Especially when last week was the first time I've ever carried a kid in years -- and that was after much "persuasions" from Mathilda. You can't say "No" when she holds out her hands to you, asking to be carried and gives you her beady-eyed look.

:)

But me? Teach?

This calls for more soul-searching.
BRB

I'm off to meeting Lizzie soon.

My precious black-and-white cat is sleeping on my wet towels which I rescued from the afternoon drizzle. Crazy cat .. don't you wanna plonk on something soft and warm instead?

I'm reading "The World is Flat" by Thomas Friedman. This part really struck me, when he described early computer geeks who started the intellectual commons and the free software movement: "IT people tend to be very bright people and they want everybody to know just how brilliant they are." Kinda reminds me of Troy.

There's more: "They do it because they want something the market doesn't offer them; they do it for the psychic buzz that comes from creating a collective product that can beat something produced by giants like Microsoft or IBM, and - even more important - to earn the respect of their intellectual peers.

Awesome. You can see why I'm hooked on the book. :)

I've been thinking about blogs in general.
A totally anonymous standalone blog like mine is strictly a journal. I've decided to leave most entries unlocked coz none of my friends know I blog anyway. I have another LJ which I use to read my Internet friends' LJ. They are friends I made through online forums. I like their LJs, it's like a community there. It's nice to pop by once in a while to say hi and to check out how he/she is doing ...

... but you see, I've never really been known to be a clique kind of person. Even back in school, I never belonged to any gangs, but flutter from clique to clique. Even in first year of uni when you're expected to go everywhere with your Orientation Group/Tutorial Class, I'd break all the rules and sit alone. Or go away and do my own things. I think sticking around with the same faces is kinda stifling -- I need to escape and get some fresh air.

Which makes me wonder how I managed to stick to the same guy for .. what, 6 years now??! Eeps. But R is cool. He lets me do my own things, and he does his stuff. Like hanging out with his clan, playing World of Warcraft til 2 am. Or spend whole weekends playing and training for his bridge league. While I go shopping, find some place to read and stone and watch the world go by.

I would like to update as often as I can. Because this blog makes me think, reflect and I keep track of my life this year. It has been a superb year so far. I started working -- finally, at the age of 27. I learnt to handle office politics -- something I thought I'd shy away from. I picked up *gasp* programming!! -- in some obscure language no one has heard of.

Updates: John is already in Singapore. He'll report to work on Tuesday. Finally. Salvation has come. I'm hoping that things will start changing for the better at the workplace soon.

Went to the Night Safari with R last Saturday. I just want to state here so that I'll always remember my discovery of the year so far -- that I now strongly believe that fruit bats are probably descended from monkeys, much like how humans are.

Think about it -- they hang from the tree, just like monkeys. They're damn agile, moving from tree to tree with ease. Heck, they even scream like monkeys. Oh, and did I mention that they have the same diet too?

:)

Needless to say, I had a great time at the Night Safari. Heh.

Not long ago, K raised on eyebrow when I declared that I maintain my own PC. =P We had one of those conversations today and R admitted that it's a job hazzard -- no matter what/which book he swears by, nobody would believe that I *really* do service my own PC!! (R is more of a consultant, I do the actual work!)

Fixed the problem with the conky network this morning. Lesson learnt: switching between straight and cross cables will confuse the network IP address. Patch-job fix used: Unisntall/reload driver for network card. Recommended long-term solution: get a hub, to manage the little two-computer LAN in my room. Practical solution: Probably just bear with the transfer rate of USB 2.0 should I need to do more backups.

Learnt new stuff from reading cnet.com: One way to extend the lifetime of your notebook batteries -- use the SmartDrive application which comes with Windows. I guess it's that "enable S.M.A.R.T." thingy in my BIOS. Possible drawback -- will eat up a whole load of RAM. Will definitely do it if my P7010 comes with 1 GB of memory *keeps fingers crossed*

Thursday, February 17, 2005
New diseases found in Singapore

Found on mrs budak's blog: http://www.livejournal.com/users/mrsbudak/74304.html

SARS is not our only worry. The Ministry of Health is now asking the public to be on the lookout for symptoms of the following new contagious diseases -

Assma - Severe rashes around the mouth caused by kissing too much ass, the No. 1 disease in Malaysia. Civil servants are unusually at risk.

Dialarrhoea - Uncontrollable urge to continually dial friends on mobile phone to share with them such important information as "I'm now on the LRT" or "I'm walking towards the car." Victims can be recognised by large, twitching thumb.

Meesles - Blotchy skin condition caused by eating too many packets of instant noodles.

Multiple Spousosis - Affliction whereby victims make frequent trips to Thailand, Indonesia, and China to take on additional brides. Middle-aged men are at significant risk.

Yellow Fever - Compulsion to date Asian females. Very common affliction amongst foreign talent/expatriates working in Malaysia. Also known as Pinkerton's Disease.

Totonus - Flushed complexion, high blood pressure and sometimes depression at finding out one has not touched lottery.

Heavytitis - Excessively large breasts. This disease comes in several variant strains: Heavytitis A, Heavytitis B, Heavytitis C and sometimes Heavytitis DD.

Cybertension - Feelings of stress and panic caused by lack of internet access.

Dyebetes - A compulsive need to colour one's hair. Reddish brown tints are the most common symptom, but health authorities have reported a new strain of blond highlights.

Chicken Tox - Victims exhibit a great need to talk cock. Incurable and highly contagious. Spread by ordinary conversation, and may be exacerbated by good food and alcohol. Politicians and lawyers are especially susceptible. Incurable.

At the Bukit Batok Burger King now, playing Yahoo! Hold'em Poker. I can't believe I was actually craving for salad all week. Hehe .. maybe I'm really a rabbit at heart. *hops away*

Honestly, online Poker isn't the same as the real thing. Poker is really like bluff, partly psychology and partly skill. Demurr. I can't bluff. Full stop. Wonder why everyone seem to treat it like it's some deficiency in my character. Sulk. Question: when my cards are kinda okay but the stakes are getting crazy, do I play along? Figured that I'm no gambler. I only play "safe" games. Keep "folding" early in the game. So boring, huh? No fun.

Surfing the net wirelessly outdoors does have its charms. Looks kinda cool, and I really wanna get some mileage out of my $3500 investment. =P I know, looking back, the laptop is a crazy buy. Had fun with it while I was at NTU and I accomplished what I've always dreamed of -- surfing the net from my bed.

John Tristan will be in town next week. Wheeee! We're one step closer to the controllers implemented in the fab! =) Going off now. My conscience is eating into me -- kids are waiting to occupy my seat!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/humanbody/mind/surveys/whatamilike/index.shtml

Results
Your answers suggest you are a Peacemaker

The four aspects that make up this personality type are:
Spontaneous, Facts, Hearts and Introvert
Summary of Peacemakers

* Value personal freedom
* Particularly sensitive to the feelings of others
* Think of themselves as steady, gentle and sympathetic
* Others may mistake their quiet nature for weakness

More about Peacemakers:

Peacemakers focus on the present and enjoy helping others in practical ways. They are sensitive to the world around them and take quiet joy from people and nature, particularly animals. Peacemakers value close relationships, but it may take time for others to get to know them.

Peacemakers live by a set of personal values, which they work hard to reflect in their everyday life. They would rather support an activity than organise it. When they do find themselves in leadership positions, they observe quietly and lead by example.

In situations where they can't use their talents or are unappreciated, Peacemakers may withdraw and become self-critical. Under extreme stress, Peacemakers may become even more critical of themselves and others and make harsh judgements about minor issues.

Peacemakers tend to show someone how much they care about them by helping them in a practical way rather than putting their feelings into words.
Peacemaker Careers

Peacemakers are often drawn to jobs that allow them to serve others and require close attention to detail.

From: http://hokev.brinkster.net/quiz/default.asp

eXpressive: 7/10
Practical: 3/10
Physical: 6/10
Giver: 7/10

You are a XSYG--Expressive Sentimental Physical Giver. This makes you a Sex Bomb.

You are sexy sex sex sex! The sexness! You are the sexiest, hottest and most charismatic of all types. You are a captivating speaker and a great dinner date -- relaxed, self-effacing, charming and generous. Your type probably has origins in something sad -- trying to keep the peace in a tough family situation, or an early heartbreak -- and you'll probably want to address and resolve that at some point, but in your relationships that heartache is pure gold!

You lie effortlessly -- not necessarily a bad thing. You can have problems with fidelity. You need frequent praise and validation, and in seeking it you can make decisions that aren't consistent with your general good judgment. In other words, don't cheat on your significant other just because someone is paying attention to you.

You strongly dislike conflict, and will avoid it. Like an XPYG, you give so much of yourself to your partner that you feel dismissed and unappreciated if you don't get the same in return. But you internalize your feelings more and have a hard time getting over them. You don't *want* to cheat -- you just keep finding yourself in vulnerable situations. But you'll stay with your partner in the long run from guilt and a desire to please.

Your sex life will always be hot. You are one of the rare people who can keep the fires of passion going forever -- if you find a good match. Find another XSYG and you will never need (or want) anyone else again.

Of the 191528 people who have taken this quiz, 8.1 % are this type.