COE analysis June 1st round

In my last posting, I predicted that COE price should stay about the same or slide. I was wrong cos I forget to take into consideration of the three weeks break. Last round till this round has a three weeks interval instead of the usual two. From the past experience, three weeks break usually will see a substantial rise in COE price. Cat A this round see a large jump posted at $11,202 which is a jump of $1,102. Cat B on the other hand sees a smaller increase to $12,200 which up $399. So does this mean it is end of low COE? My answer is no. According to newspaper, the jump is fuelled by the increasing competition among car dealers by offering attractive packages. Also dun forget the three weeks break condition. A quick check with toyota price list confirms my answer. Cat A COE up about $1k but Toyota dropped its Cat A car price by $1k. Cat B Coe up $399 but Cat B car price dropped $1k! This happens to Nissan too. They even drop $2k to some of their bigger cars! Any way, the situation would be clearer when the next round revert back to two weeks break.

X-Men: The Last Stand

Today I went to watch X-Men: The Last Stand. Ok, it is very exciting compared to the previous 2 X-Men movies. The special effects this time is a lot more grander. But I dun really like the story line. Also it features a lot of mutants but under developed them which is a shame. This time I would say the mutants are more well balanced. Storm this time does not performed any powerful tactic as seen in X2. The more fantastic moves are given to Magneto and Jean Grey. Overall, it is a very entertaining movie.

PC Show 2006

I just came back from PC Show at Suntec city. I reached there at around 6.30pm and walked around. It is so crowded! I squeezed my way through and landed in front of a booth selling Kingston storage device. Maybe I feel too excited (due to the low price) or maybe I too lazy to squeeze around, I bought one 512MB mini SD card for $27 and one 1GB SD card for $44 on the spot. Later I walked around some more and found it is even cheaper elsewhere!! I immediately "lost" about $10!! Sob sob!!

Any way, I also bought Maha AAA/AA battery charger for $49 (usual is $59). It got rave reviews and only got one sole distributor in Singapore. I have tried to lay my hand on this many times before but the shop is always not open when I am there. I also bought 16 maha 2700mAh AA batteries for $60 (usual $80). It also got rave reviews and said better than Sanyo ones. So overall still on the lucky side I guess. Total gain is $20. Haha!

Low carpark height

Today I drove my brother's van out to town. I suppose to park at Shaw Tower. But this weekend got PC show and Shaw Tower is full. So I detour to park at some nearby housing estate. There is a basement carpark but initately I dun want to get in cos I feel my van is too tall. But I saw a similar van came out so I thought it is safe. Who knows it is not! The top of the van is dented and looks pretty bad. Tough luck! Have to be more careful next time.

Siam food

Today I got a vistor from Germany. My boss insisted that I should go with him to acompany this guy for dinner. So he dragged me along to Jurong Point. Together with us is another student from Russia. At there, we ate at Siam Kitchen. We ordered the set meal that has tom yum soup, black olive rice, vegetables etc... The food is nice and not so spicy. But not to the ang mohs. They really cannot take chili which I feel there is really none. Any way, we ate for around $100 for 4 people and my boss picks up the tab. Heh heh.

Public phone

All along I feel Singapore is very efficient and convenient in many areas until today. The public phones problem in Singapore is really bad! Today I went out with a friend and he needs to go off for a while. Then, I realised my handphone is flat and so I want to look for a public phone to call him. But what the hell?! I cannot find one in sight! Terrible! After walking for a while around the neighbourhood, finally found 3 public phones cluster together. But what the hell x 2?! None of them is a coin operated phone! So I run to nearby 7-eleven to purchase a phone card. But what the hell x 3?! The sales person asked me:"You want a Singtel one or Starhub one?" I say:"What is the diff?" She said:"Singtel one can only use on Singtel phone. Starhub one can only use on Starhub phone." What happen to the old one-for-all phone card? In the end, I bought the Starhub one cos it looks nicer and cheaper (starts at $5 value as compared to Singtel $10). I am wondering if I happen to be a tourist, I will be a dead meat.

One North NTU Alumni Club

Today NTU Alumni club at One North opens its door. I was invited to have a tour around the compound. Overall, ok only. I feel it should be better. Firstly, the car park. It is way too small and crowded!! Only 90 free lots for members and arond 100 lots for visitors. But maybe they want to discourage people from driving?

Next is the lift. No number indicating if the lift is on which floor. So how you expect people to know should wait for how long? Movement of lift also very slow. Maybe they want to encourage people walking stairs to keep fit?

Third, the gym. Not many equipments but quite spacious. I think they should put in more equipments or else space is wasted.

I feel a bit not to my expectation. 9 level high but a bit lacking in facilities. I wonder what happen to the spaces. In fact, I feel the Civil Service Club is better. However, it is not yet fully done. I think it will only be up and running by July. I hope I will change my views by then. Haha!

The Da Vinci Code

I just came back watching The Da Vinci Code. I feel it is quite a nice show maybe because I never read the book before. I just did some online research on what this story is about. Hence, I can catch the plot. My friend, on the other hand, cannot catch the story went on sleeping throughout the show! Any way, the locations and sites in the movie are very beautiful! It makes me feel like going there. One of the casts, Ian McKellen, did a good job. The rest are ok which I feel a bit restricted maybe due to the character. The lead female should be doing more work I feel since she is expert in decoding. Overall, it is exciting. PS: I love the way French speaks.

Presentation

Today I got a presentation. Together with my boss, we have to present our research work to the whole company. At first, I thought nobody turn up but who knows today quite a lot of people turn up. Any way, the presentation turned out quite well. At first, I was very nervous. But after 5 minutes of presenting, my heart really stop beating liao. Haha. Then, I really very relax and maybe this is why I can present better cos I not that nervous. I got quite a positive feedback from my colleagues and boss. Ok lah. At least I did not disgrace my boss. Heh heh.

Secondary school teacher passed away

Today when I first step into office, a friend of mine who happened to be in the same secondary school as I was told me a bad news. Our secondary school teacher, Mr Wong Kiow, has just passed away. I was quite shocked as he is only 62 and I have seen him about a year ago. He looks very healthy to me though I dunno what causes his departure. He taught me Maths when I was in Secondary 2. He looks fierce but he is quite a good teacher. Farewell Mr Wong.

Medical checkup

Today my company organised a free simple medical checkup. The test consists of

1. high blood pressure test
2. body mass index
3. fat content
4. diabetes and some others

My result is ok but BMI slightly high and I think I dun drink enough water! Ah!!! Must exercise liao and drink 8 cups of water everyday!!!

Hong Kong supper

I just came back from supper. Recently, Hong Kong style cafes have taken Singapore by storm. So my friend and I decided to check out one that is quite popular. It is located along East Coast Road opposite Caltex petrol station. We reached there around 12.45am and there are many people. But still got many seats available. The cafe has a wide variety of food! From rice to noodle to bread to dessert. But on the whole, it is not cheap. We ordered 2 thick toasts and 2 cups of "yuan yang" which total around $12. The toast is not bad but I dun really like the "yuan yang" as it tastes a bit bitter. Must try other things next time.

COE analysis May 2nd round

In my last prediction, I said COE might up a bit. Indeed, this round COE is really up "a bit". Cat A this round posted $10,100 which up $97. Cat B is $11,801, rising $282. Last week, newspaper reported "the crowd" is back after COE fell sharply. So I thought this round COE might rebound at least a $500 but no. A quick check with Toyota and Nissan for their latest car price shows that there are no changes. So this might shows that they have enough order to keep them going. But looking at the amount it rises, it could only shows how much "the crowd" is.

Any way, I always feel that how can the demand for new cars keep growing? Singaporeans is not that rich one. Most are just average Joe earning $4k-5k (or less) on the average. With this amount of money, it is unlikely for them to change cars every three years like it used to be due to the new tax structure and higher interest rate. So unless there is a cut in tax stucture or a slash in pricing or interest rate, I feel the demand is unlikely to rise in near future. So I predict the next round COE will stay about the same as this round or fall some more as it is already seen by this round that a cut in $2000 in car price is still "not good enough" to bring in enough crowd.

Latest model

Today latest COE is out but I will review it tomorrow. I think from time to time I will post some car news that I come across. Like got what latest model coming etc.. I shall start the ball rolling by introducing two compact cars hitting Singapore soon. The first one to be arrived by end of this month is Mitsubishi I. This is a rather compact car that is no larger than 660 cc, producing not more than 64 hp in a body up to 3.4 metres long. It will be available in two variants when the first few cars arrive from later this month onwards. One will be an entry-level 'no-frills' version, while another will have additional specifications like xenon headlamps, intelligent keyless system, and factory-fitted MP3 player and 15-inch alloy wheels. The estimated price is from $55,000 with COE. My feeling is it is hard to take off (I might be wrong) cos with that price you can get a bigger car.

The second compact car to hit our shore is by Naza. You might be wondering what brand is that? Naza is Malaysia's third automaker after Proton and Perodua. Its Naza Sutera will be landing here in August. According to news that the five-door hatchback's design concept and body were styled by Italy's legendary Pininfarina, with the ride and handling developed by Proton-owned sports carmaker Lotus. It will have a Suzuki engine and Japanese technology that will be assembled in China. So expect the price of this 1.1 litre car to be around $35k with COE. My feel is it will be attractive especially as a off-peak car.

Bicycle

Today, I went to buy a mountain bike. I all along wanted to buy a bicycle but just that no time to go and nobody knows about bicycle to go with me. Finally, I found someone who has some knowledge on bicycle to company me. I went to a shop in Bukit Panjang opposite Ten Mile Junction. But too bad it is not open. My friend bought his bike from there. So I thought of buying from there as well.

So we decided to go to a shop near my house. After looking around for a while and recommendation from my friend and the shopkeeper, I bought a mountain bike for $307. The brand is Hasa which is from Taiwan and the model is T-9. Usual price is $320+ but got special offer and cost $270. The shopkeeper keeps saying very good. So I bought it. Then, I bought a night light for $10, a good bicycle stand for $17 and a water bottle holder for $10. Then, I quickly test ride it just now at the park nearby. Quite fun! Haha. Good for cuttng fat!!

Mission: Impossible III

I just came back from watching Mission: Impossible III. A few of my friends strongly recommended it and go as far as saying it is the best Mission: Impossible movie. Ok, I wun say it is the best but it is not too bad. Tom Cruise still looks good in this show. Story wise this time it is more human cos it involves family. Maggie Q looks nice in the red dress but I think the makeup artistes did not do their work. The baddie also look bad enough. Heh heh. There are also a lot of high tech equipments and some really look so impossible. Overall, it will be a better show if the villian is more powerful who dun die so easily.

Civil Service Club

Today me and a friend went for lunch. At first, we wanted eat at a chinese restaurant in West Mall. But it is such a long queue even though it is around 1.30pm. So suddenly my friend suggested to go to eat in the restaurant in the Civil Service Club in Bukit Batok. I feel it is a good idea cos I also wanted to see see what this club looks like. We went into the club and is greeted by a nice water fall. Cooling! Then, we went to the 2nd floor to the chinese Hilltop Garden restaurant. We had tim sum lunch and order some side dish. Two of us ate around $39. The best part is there is no service charge!!

After lunch, we explored around the club. It has a nice swimming compound! Got a children pool, wave pool, current pool and normal swimming pool. But it is only open to member. The club also boost a gym, bowling alley, karaoke room, seminar room, snooker room etc.... Very good facilities! Some are open to public. Civil servants and staffs from government related companies are able to join this club for $6 per month. Public needs to pay $300 per year!!!! I am quite tempted to join. Maybe will check out with the club soon. Hee!!

Mother's day dinner

Mother's day is next week but we celebrate this week. We went to eat at Tung Lok restaurant at East Coast Park. It is a buffet dinner. Each adult pays about $38+++ and child is $23+++. You can eat a lot of things. Oysters (1 serving and limited to 2 per person), crabs (1 serving), meats, fish, prawns etc... Eat all you want! In the end, 7 adults and 2 children ate about $370. The food not too bad and service wise also not bad. Food is quick to serve. Overall, I will say it is a good choice.

COE analysis May 1st round

Like I say previously, $10k COE is about to come. Indeed. This round we already see the $10k COE for CAT A. Yesterday COE latest results is CAT A $10,003 which down $1898. CAT B is $11,519. Slide $1582. A quick look at the latest pricing of Nissan and Toyota show that they have slashed $2k off the list price. Such a generous slash might generate some buying interest. However, I feel rising interest rate and petrol will still keep people from changing cars unless no choice. Also, currently no new cars to generate buying fever. Indeed, reading newspaper where a car distributor manager said that no one is buying cars. Demand is still very weak. Any way, I feel next round might up a bit due to lowering of price and might create a few backlog. But I still feel a COE of less than $10k is possible.

Malacca

I just came back from Malacca. The trip will be fantastic if not for two bad experiences. The first is in Malacca where got a begger begs us for RM$0.10 saying he wants to call his friend. When I ignored him, he said:"Don't be stingy." I replied:"I no coins!". Even if I have, I also dun want to give him. I rather throw in Malacca river.

Another disgusting event is at the Malaysia check point when we are about to drive out back to Singapore. The police stop us and insisted my friend no wear seat belt and wanted to give us RM$200 summon! Then, he said:"Ok, lah. I "helped" you and you give RM$50 can liao." We dun want any trouble so we paid up and left. Corruption! This incident also got its good points. First is to make my friends and I more appreciate Singapore. Second is to make my friend remember to put on his seat belt! Heh heh. So I decided to boycott Malaysia for the time being. I intend to go Kuala Lumpur this May but I will shelve this idea.

Any way, driving to Malacca is not hard. It is around 210km from Singapore and quite straight forward from Tuas. Just follow the sign board. Just that it is a bit harder when you in Malacca Town. Any way, still quite ok. The charges to use 2nd Link Singapore check point is $3.70. You need to pay when you enter Malaysia and another time when you enter Singapore. The total toll from Johor Bahru to Malacca is around RM$36. Also must pay both time go and come back.

The hotel we stay not bad. A 3 stars award winning Aldy hotel. Service wise I feel still not too bad. The pricing also reasonable. Two nights per room with breakfast is RM$286. It is also situated beside the police station and within walking distance to all the tourist spots. The town is quite small. I took about one morning and finished visiting all the important tourists spot.

Then, we went to the nearby Mahkota Parade shopping mall. Quite big and got many things to buy but not cheap. We bought a few local food items and headed to Chinatown. It has a street called Jonker street where after 6pm, it is closed for traffic and stalls start to set to become a night market. At that street, there are some famous food. The first one is the chicken rice ball, second is the durian chendol but I dun eat durian. My friends said very nice. Third is the nyonya and baba laksa. Yum!!!

Off

Ok, polling is near and so far my side has no news. So a bit boring. Just when I am bored, a consolation price came knocking on my email. As everyone knows that polling will be held on a saturday which is a non-working day. It will be declared as a public holiday. My company policy is to give a day leave to compensate the holiday on a weekend. Hurray!!!

COE analysis April 2nd round

Ok, I decided to start a COE analysis one day after the latest COE price is released. Yesterday, the latest results is out and CAT A is $11,901. Same price as last bidding and CAT B is $13,101. Down $301. This might seems COE price is stablising but looking deeper at the number of bids received, you can see that demand has become slower. A few dealers said market is very weak. A quick check at Toyota latest car price shows that they dropped $1k for smaller cc cars and about $2k or more for bigger cc cars. This shows how the market leader feels about the trend of next round COE. So I feel expect to dive further for the next bidding. Those who wish to buy car can wait for a while. I feel $10k COE is about to come again.

Superbowl

I just came back from bowling. This is a new found interest in our lab. We went to the nearest bowling center which is Jurong Superbowl. Maybe now exam period and a weekday, the bowling center is very empty. We played 3 games and I am in number 2 throughout the 3 games. My results are 119, 104 and 98. Quite rotten.

LCD TV

Lately I feel like buying a TV to replace the one that exploded in my room. I have been looking around and I find that Samsung LCD TV looks the sleekest. Very professional! Now LCD TV like very cheap. A lot of promotion going on recently. 32" LCD TV now I think can get around $2k. But I wun get so big one cos put in my room. So I think I will get around 20". But must be HD ready. A lot of 20" and below LCD TV not HD ready. So maybe have to wait for a while more.

Qing Ming

Today my family and I went to pay our respects to our ancestors. According to chinese custom, tomorrow will be the last day of qing ming festival. We first went to Mandai. Reached around 9.30am. Everything done at around 11am. Lucky we went early. By the time we left, long queue at the main road!

Then, we proceed to Aljunied. Also another massive jam. But we are smart to take another small road where nobody knows. Heh heh. So in the end we avoided the jam. Pray until about 12.30pm, we went for our lunch at Yishun and proceed on to our last destination which is Lim Chu Kang.

However, it rained very heavily on our way there! So we detoured home and waited until 4pm where the rain stopped and then we went to pray. Everything ended at around 6.30pm and it is home sweet home liao.

Ice Age: The Meltdown

I just came back from watching Ice Age: The Meltdown. I would say this movie is quite nice. The effects are nice but I think can be nicer. This time I find it funnier than the first Ice Age movie. Story flow wise is quite good. Got nice musical songs also. Overall, nice.

Citibank

Recently I cancelled 2 Citibank credit cards as I did not use. Today I got a call from Citibank asking me to reconsider. They provide me with alternatives to keep the card without paying the subscription fee. But I really did not use. Then the officer said she upgrade me to Platinum and waive off another year for me! Haha! Any way, I accept it since free.

Exercise

Recently I am working out at night starting from 11pm to 12am. I feel I am getting fatter and fatter leh! Working in office really can make ppl fat. Another thing is I love to eat junk food and supper. No time to work out also due to busy work. Recently I everyday worked till around 10+pm! Tiring. So try to gym a bit at night which is my only free time. Sob sob!

Date Movie

Just came back watching Date Movie. Ok, a lot of people warned me how stupid it is but I watched it any way cos my friend got free tickets. Any way, recently quite stress also. Watched dumb show also not too bad lah. I think overall it is still watchable. Jokes are quite lame but some are funny. But I think got many part censored and a few scenes also dunno what they mean. But other than that ok lah.

Bowling result

Today my company bowling committee member email out the results. My team actually not bad leh. We came in 5th out of 21 teams. But a bit wasted!! We only lack 3rd and 4th team by 10 and 9 points respectively. If only my boss did not "strike" his back, I think we will be in top 3! Sob sob. In terms of men overall, I came in number 13. Not even in top 10! Ah...... Never mind. Next year try again.

Bowling

Today my company organised a bowling competition. I joined for the fun of it. First round I did not bad scoring a point of 112. My boss did three strikes but guess what? He also "strike" his back. So I help him to play the second round. The second round I play even better scoring a 157 points. However, I am so tired after the second round as I play double. Third round I bascially fall flat and only managed a 98 points. Sob sob! But ok lah. Play play loh since it is free. Haha!!

Swiss delights

I just came back eating cheese fondue at Swiss Culture in Suntec City. This is after I searching highs and lows for my fondue, some kind soul has pointed me to a right direction. Any way, the food serve very slowly. My family and I nearly die of hunger while waiting. Imagine today not many people. I cannot think what will happen if the whole place is packed! The cheese fondue is not quite I expected. A pot of melted cheese and some bread cost about $40! We order some other dishes and overall quite full lah. Food not too bad also. 5 of us eat around $137 after a 15% discount using NTUC card.

K Box

I just came back from singing karaoke at K Box. I long time no sing liao and feel like venting my stress. Finally manage to find a friend to go with me after my cousin decide to support his Liverpool team. We sing from around 5 hours starting from 9pm. Sing a lot Jay Chau's songs cos easy to sing. No need to sing lyric one. Haha! 2 of us cost around $51. Not cheap but ok lah as it is long long one time.

Italian food

Today I saw a promotion on a pamplet that got some place selling cheese fondue. As I never try before, I decided to go and eat today. This place is Spageddies Italian Kitchen at Marina Square. But after reaching there, guess what? Cheese fondue is just a promotion on weekday and it is not on the regular menu! So disappointed!! Any way, my friend and I ordered some food, drinks and dessert. It cost around $62 after a 10% discount using UOB credit card. Food wise is not bad. But too bad, did not get to eat chesse fondue. Have to go and find again.

V for Vendetta

Just came back from watching the movie V for Vendetta with my cousins. Weekend tickets costs me $9.50 but I watched it any way. Reason is that this is the first movie I have watched this year! So let the cinema earn a bit from me loh. Any way, this movie is quite nice though talks a lot and the story plot is quite good. The main actor V did not show his face at all! Until the end when the credit rolls, then I know he is Hugo Weaving! A bit surprising. The fighting scenes are quite nicely done too. However, I feel Natalie Portman a bit nothing leh in the show. She should fight also. Wasted. Over all, quite nice but I think got some parts censored. Typical Singapore.

Mashed potato

Today I went to a nearby AXS to pay my bill. But got someone in front of me. I realise my bill due date can drag some more and I do not want to wait. So I decided to leave. But I not willing to come all the way to AXS and go back. Guess what? I went to nearby 7-11 and buy mashed potato to eat. Quite nice leh. Only $1. My friend said I siao. Go pay bill but did not pay and in the end eat mashed potato. Haha!!

Fatal frame 2

Ok, I got my TV back after it is blown. Now working well I hope. Any way, I am now playing a xbox game call Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly. It supposed to be a very scary game. But guess what? I am not scare cos I played the game armed with a walkthrough. Haha! So I know what to expect next. I know it will kill the excitment. But without the walkthrough, it is quite hard to play. Ok lah, enjoy the storyline loh. Haha.

TV blown!!

Something terrible has just happened!! I climbed into my bed and decided to watch a late night movie. So I choose to watch a TV series DVD. I think I watched until 3 episodes later which is around 3 hours, my TV blown!!! AT first I heard a slight explosion and then smell something burning. As I was in pitch black, I dunno what happen. I quickly jumped out my bed and switch on the light. To my horror, the TV emit smoked!!!!! I quickly turn off all the switches and open window and door. My father suddenly walked in and asked me what is so smelly. I told him the TV blown. I turned on fan to improved air circulation. The whole house become very smelly. But after a while, it gets better. Now my room has no TV! Sob sob. But the good news is I can stun my brother LCD TV to use. Hahaha!!!!

Oscar

Another boring week has passed and basically nothing interesting has happened. Just that monday I watched the Oscar. Glad that Ang Lee has won the best director. I heard that he is the first non-white to win. But too bad, he lost the best picture award. This year I feel quite boring. The thank you speeches are boring, the presenter speeches are boring and the host speeches are boring with the exception of the opening line regarding actress not enough money to buy clothes that cover their breasts. Other than that. Zzz.....

Delifrance

Recently HSBC has a $1 treat promotion. If you charge at least $30 to your HSBC card, you can get a $1 treat at few areas. One of them is the desserts at Delifrance. I bought a apple pie with ice cream for only $1 as I spent about $40 yesterday on my HSBC card! Good deal. The usual price is $6.95. Yum yum!

Goodies bag

Recently received a goodies bag by SPH a I subscribe FIRST magazine. THe goodies bag contains the movie, The Myth cup, Kao Biore body form, pore pack, facial foam, MGM notebook, 5 packages of shower cream and last but not least, 5 packages of condom! Haha! This goodies bag a bit lame but since free, take loh.

First magazine

Today received an invitation card from First magazine inviting me to attend to see Oscar live at some bar. But too bad, it is on next monday morning. I need to work! The invitation also not transferable. Or else I can pass to other people. Heh heh.

Acupuncture

Today early in the morning went to mend my leg. First went to see a western doctor to get some MC. Then, I went to see eastern doctor to treat my leg. At first I thought he is going to rub and twist my leg! Haha. But he said no but to give me acupunture and keep assuring me it would not be painful. Not too bad leh. After 2 hours treatment, I feel less painful. Can walk a bit liao. Today cost me $50 for all treatment. Ah... Money gone. The only happy thing is that the doctor thought I only 20 years old. Haha!!!

Sprain Ankle

Today I sprain my ankle! So painful! I played tennis and within 5 mins, I stepped on a ball and the rest is history! Now a bit painful. Swollen. I think not going to work tomorrow. Take MC for a day to rest. Heard that dragon this year really no good. Sigh.....

Wedding

I just came back from a friend wedding dinner. I gave $88. The place quite near my house. About a 10 to 15 mins drive. My friend very funny. The dinner starts at about 8pm and at 7.30pm, she called me and told me she just woke up!! Haha!! Any way, she rushed down and reached at 9pm. Overall, the food is not bad but service not really good. Waiter very not experience and slow in refilling drinks. Then, we went to the suite and it is really nice! Ok, wish them all the best!

Computer

Just got a new computer today as my current computer is dead. I asked my cousin to help me DIY one. We went to Sim Lim Square to check out the parts. The one I wanted dun have stock! In the end, my budget increase from $700 to $1000++!! Ah!!!! My this computer costs me $1206! Sob sob!! Very poor liao this month. Then, bring home to install my old harddisk until 10pm++. Lucky got my cousin to help me a bit. Or else I will be very sian. Ok, this is my computer specs:

- ASUS A8N-E NF4 + AMD 939-3000 $400
- Kingston DDR400 PC3200 - CL2.5 * 2 $146
- ASUS GF 6600GT Extreme 256MB DDR3 $275
- Pioneer 16XDVD+-RW DVR-110DBK $75
- Western Digital 250GB $160
- Black Casing $70
- Coolmaster 430W PSU $80

Hopefully this computer can last me another 5 years! Heh heh.

Dinner and dance

Just came back from my company dinner and dance. We have a 8 course dinner and I paid $20 for it. The food wise not bad lah but services quite good. We play games and dance. But as usual I did not win any prizes from the lucky draw segment.

Radio

Today I went to Funan center to collect a free radio given to me free by DBS. This is when you charged your Singapore Powers or Starhub bills to your Everyday credit card through giro arrangement. Not too bad lah. Got time display as well as temperature!

AXS

I just came back from supper. Ok actually my main motive is not to have supper. Recently I have switched paying my credit card bills from cheques to internet banking to paying thru AXS. Why? Cos they got lucky draw! Haha. The prize is a 1.6L Beetle. Every $50 u spent paying thru AXS, gives you 1 chance and paying at AXS in SPC petrol station double the chance. So I crazy and travel all the way to the nearest SPC to pay my bill. My friend thinks I am crazy but I feel ok what. Nothing to lose. Since you have to pay the bills, might as well use it to win some lucky draw. Hope I win!!!!

Tampines Mall

I just came back from Tampines Mall shopping. I got a $50 Isetan voucher given by HSBC which will expire today. So I quickly run to Tampines Mall Isetan to spend it. I bought a nike shorts and a addidas t-shirt which total cost around $87. After the $50, I only paid $37. Not bad. Then, I went to Giordano to see see as they put big big says 30% off. But I feel cheated! I saw a pair of jeans and try it. Not bad $49. After wasting my time liao, when paying, the sales gal told me this one no sales as only selected items! I feel it is clearly misleading! But I bought it any way but this will be my last Giordano stuff! I will be boycotting this brand until further notice.

Chu Qi

Today is the seventh day of Lunar New Year and is also known as "human day". So happy birthday everyone!! My family went out to eat at Golden Landmark hotel. Inside got a restaurant called Moo Choi on the 3rd floor. 9 of us (7 adults and 2 children) ate around $300. Not too ex. Very full also! Yum yum.

Happy Chinese New Year!!

Today is the 2nd day of Chinese New Year and I just came back from Malaysia! I went to French Village over the New Year. It is quite far. Slightly at Genting area. But the journey to there took us very long! Traffic jam plus bus broke down halfway etc.. We left Singapore at about 7.30am and reached our place at around 6pm! Almost 12 hours! But of cos in between got come down go toilet and have meals. Any way, the bus ride made me nearly vomit ok.

French Village has nothing much. Just a resort. But it is not really very cold like Cameron Highland. In the day, it is around the temperature of Singapore. Only until at night, it goes down to around 20 degree C. At there, I went to a Japanese Tea farm and a rabbit farm. That is all. Stay one night and then travel back. Massive jam at JB custom!! Lucky we took a coach. So the coach lane and custom are empty! Heh heh. Those driving cars one I wish them all the best! I sleep liao. Good night and Happy Lunar New Year!!

Renuion dinner

Today super busy. Although it is Chinese New Year eve today. I still went back to work for a while. Then about 4pm, I quickly rush home. My mum ask me to help out in doing last minute spring cleaning. Until about 6.30pm, then we all settle down to eat our reunion dinner! Just received 2 ang pows from my mum and my brother. Heh heh. I will not be in Singapore for the next few days. Happy Lunar New Year!!

NTU Magazine

Today I received the monthly issue of NTU magazine. When I flipped open, quite surprised to see the IES award thing featured in this issue. Heh heh. My friends saw the articles all SMS me to congrates me. Suddenly feel so popular. Haha. Must keep this issue in my cupboard.

Hair

Chinese New Year is coming and I dun even have time to buy clothes and cut hair lately. Today got some time quickly run off from work and rush straight to my hair dresser. I cut and highlight until around 9pm! So hungry! My hair cost me $65. Now left my clothes. Heh heh.

Shoes

I just bought a pair of shoes for working purpose as my current one is a goner. Rush down to Orchard at around 8pm and went to U2 in Wisma Atria. Like a mad house sale. Very messy. Then, went to Isetan but got nothing much. So in the end, my friend and I went to Takashimaya. Walk around and finally saw a pair of nice working shoes by Pierre Cardin. It costs $123. But after 10% discount and a $40 Taka voucher from a friend, I pay around $70. Not bad. After shopping till around 9pm, we went for dinner. To my surprise, everywhere is long queue!! In the end, we settle for our dinner at Tonkichi as there is no queue. Heh heh. We ordered a twin sharing set and total cost about $52. Quite full!!

LCD screen protector

Just now went to Jurong Point to buy a lcd screen protector from a handphone shop. Dunno what brand. It costs me $9.90. The seller was quite friendly and recommend the best one as it does not have my model. So I used the screen protector for K750i on my W550i. But I think quite fit. He also offered to help me stick onto it. Quite professional!! Now my screen looks so nice and clear! As if it is brand new! Haha!!

Presentation

Today my company has some visitors. They are some professors from some university. I thought they can give me some suggestions on my work. But in the end, I feel nothing insightful. Hahah! So bored.

Wonderfold

Today my brother bought a simple gadget called wonderfold from a pasar malam. This thing is simply made up of 4 pieces of plastics linked up together which is foldable. It is use to fold your clothes like a professional as seen in those stores like Giordano!! Those who invent this thing are really creative. Any way, this piece of equipment cost $10!!!!

Stressful

Recently got many things to do and dunno how to do. Do already also dunno correct or not. Can say quite not smooth. Sian! Very stressful!! But today feel much better. Hope that I can overcome my stressful feeling. Dun worry be happy!!!

Rain

It has been raining for over dunno how many days liao! Today rain the whole day without stopping! Intend to go gym and tennis but in the end did not go due to the rain! Then wanted to shopping also cancel due to the rain! The temperature I think now around 25 degree celcius. Cold cold. But one good thing is good weather and nice to sleep! Haha!!!

Curry fish head

I just back from eating a feast treated by my University's Professor. We went to Beer garden at Taman Jurong at Jurong Park. We ordered a lot of dishes! I think about 6 to 7 dishes! Quite nice. But the curry fish head so so lah. I think 11 of us ate about $200. Then we drink some beer. Overall, the food is not bad.

Dividend

I just got my Citibank Dividend Platinum card. Last time I got the normal dividend card but Citibank upgrade me. This card now has better value. 5% rebate for petrol!!! 2% others. Very good! Love this card!!

Wedding

I have been busy over the past two days for my friend's wedding. He asked me to be his "brother". His wedding is spread over two days. The first day which is on New Year eve. It is his church wedding and ROM. By 5pm, everything is done. At night, I went to another friend's house for countdown until 3am! Then, today is my friend's wedding dinner. We helped out a bit. I gave red packet $100 and he gave me $40 shopping voucher as a token of appreciation. All the best to his marriage and Happy New Year!!

BBQ

Just came home from BBQ at East Coast Costa Sands resort. This BBQ is organised by me but is sponsored by my boss. We gathered a few people in our working place to relax for a night. Total got 14 people turned up and total cost of this event is about $308. We played one night mahjong and I only managed to win once. Sob sob! Any way, quite fun. Hope to do it again soon.

Narnia

I just came back from watching The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe. It is very nice! Never expect it to be that exciting. Although the show is 2.5 hours long, it has no dull moments. The computer effects are good but still can improve somemore. My complains are that the weapons are not fully explored and the ending for the witch is too simple! A bit wasted. But overall, quite a nice show.

Merry Christmas

Today is Christmas!! But I spent my morning playing tennis and for the rest of the day I spring clean my room. Now my room is neater and roomier after I dumped a lot of junks! Now I see my room so clean I also happy. Ha ha!! Merry Christmas once again!!!

Silent Night

Today is Christmas eve and I went to Orchard road. Wow! It is so crowded! From the MRT station to Ngee Ann City, I think can't even walk! Managed to squeeze thru and end up having my dinner at Yoshinoya at 6.30pm before the queue getting worse. Dinner with my friend cost me $18.30. Later we went to Takashimaya to shop. In the end, I bought a handphone cover for about $9 and a Puma sports attire for $92. But I paid using DBS black card and got 10% rebate. After walking for a little more while, I rush to my small auntie house for some celebration at around 10.30pm. Chat up a little with my cousins before leaving for home at 11pm. Very tired!! Any way, Merry Christmas!!

Leave

Today I am on leave and went to do some personal things. First, I went to open a bank account. Then, I went to update my Mitsubishi M900 firmware. Next, I went to Funan to collect a pair of Narnia watches which are given to me free when I bought Sony Ericsson W550i phone from Starhub. I gave one to a friend. Guess what? After that I rush back to office to do my work although I am on leave. Heh heh. I am a good employee. What to do? Ha ha!

M900

Today I just got a new handphone for $0! It is one of my favourite Mitsubishi M900. I always wanted to get this when it is released about a year ago. The reason is that I am currently using Mitsubishi M750 and I love it. The picture quality is very good!! Going to explore it a bit more.

King Kong....

I just came back watching this movie. I really feel disappointed. The story is way too draggy! 3 hours! There are a lot of things I feel can cut away!! Like the first 40 mins of getting onto the skull island and the rescue mission. I really feel bored at times thruout the show. Luckily, got a few nice fighting scenes that save this movie from being a total bored. The special effects are not good enough. I feel with that kind of money pumped into this movie, I feel it can be much better. Overall, ok lah. I would not say very good. 3/5.

Free gifts!

Today I run around Singapore to get my free gifts!

First, I went to collect a SIM card backup device given by HSBC. I try to use it and quite hard to use! Not user friendly at all.
Next, I went to Safra club to get my 128MB Aigo MP3 player and 6 weeks unlimited Gym pass. This is a no frill player which I think is good enough for me. Haha!Then, I went to Starhub to collect my Narnia umbrella. Heh heh. Not exactly free gift. I use 500 of my Starhub points to exchange for it. This umbrella is quite big. Should be very useful in heavy rains. Heh heh. Lastly, I also got a new handphone Sony Ericsson W550i for $88 after using a $200 voucher given by a friend. A bit disappointed with this phone. The phone hangs on me a few time when I want to access the bluetooth. Need to go to service center soon.

Aeon Flux

Just came back watching Aeon Flux. I feel this is quite a nice show. Action pack, creative and not to mention gorgeous Charlize Theron. Maybe the story line might be a bit fast and hard to catch for some, I feel the special effects and fighting scenes make up for it. The story flow is quite good with no boring moments. Overall, quite ok lah. Not as bad as most said.

Food glorious food Part 2

Today had my second round of birthday celebration. Morning I had dim sum breakfast with family at Teahouse at China Square. It cost me around $116 after 20% discount as we went before 11.30am. Then, we walked walked at around China Square Central where there sells a lot of collectible toys. Around 1.30pm, we drove to Harbour Front again to the Big superstore to see see. Had our lunch at the food court before heading home. In the evening, I had my dinner with my boss at Mayim in West Mall. We ate ramen and xiao long bao. The meal cost around $23. Quite full! Any way, happy birthday to myself!

Food glorious food Part 1

Today I was whole day eating to celebrate my first round of birthday. First I went to Jurong Point at around 11.30am and have lunch at the Soup Restaurant with a secondary school friend. A few dishes cost us around $48. Then, I went to eat Korean food at Ju Shin Jung in the evening at 6.30pm. It is opposite Haw Par Villa. 3 of us ate around $107. Quite nice. After the dinner we went to Harbour Front for shopping until 9.30pm and went to West Coast Park McDonalds for a drink. Tomorrow will have another round of celebration. Ha ha!

Actor and model

Today I become an actor and model for a day. My company is shooting the corporate video and photo. Then I was "invited" to take part. Need to put light make up also!! Now I found out acting is not easy! Haha! Any way, it is a rather nice experience.

NTU website

Today I found out that the news on IES awarding me the award was on NTU website. Heh heh. Ok, I sound a bit hao lian. But it is human nature mah. Maybe ppl might think no big deal what?! But to me it is really something for me to proud of loh. Ok lah. Vanity aside. Just feel happy to see my work got recognise. Now me concentrating on amending my thesis and also rushing for a report.

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

Just came back from watching Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Overall not bad but I feel it can be better. Like Chow should have more appearance and ending should make her together with Harry. Hermione entrance to the ball is not grand enff. Ron and Hermione have no parts in helping Harry this time round makes the movie looks good only on the special effects. I never read the novel so I comment base solely as "a normal cinema goer" point of view.

Sitex

Today I went to Sitex at Expo at around 7pm with a friend. She wanted to get a digital camera and a thumb drive. After many rounds of bargaining, she finally got the Panasonic Lumix FX-9 for $720 plus additional freebies. I helped my boss to get a 1GB thumb drive and a 512MB SD card. As for myself, I got a Acer TravelMate 3213WXMi notebook. Actually getting a notebook is not part of my plan. Any way, this notebook is quite value for money!! I got it for around $1800. The specs:

- Intel Centrino 1.86GHz
- Microsoft Windows XP Home
- 128MB graphic card
- 14.1" TFT LCD
- 80GB + Free 40GB external hard disk
- 512MB Ram
- DVD writer
- Bluetooth
- Wi-fi
- 5-in-1 card reader
- Infra red

All the things I wanted are in and best of all the price is less than $2k!! Not bad! Heh heh.

Bidding...

Today my company is holding an old furniture sale. They are selling away old chairs, bookshelves, computer tables etc... It goes by bidding system and the highest bidder will get it. My boss and I bid a bookshelf for $5 and both of us got it. We paid up today and rush to choose a good one. There are many people faster than us! But ok lah. In the end, my boss and I managed to get a not bad one. $5 only so cannot complain much. Heh heh. Just that now need to think of a place to put.

Not smooth sailing

Today me and my boss went to deserted area in my company to spray some paint. Who knows the door leading to this place is once way access. Meaning the door can be only open from one side and we are stranded!! No handphone with me also. Then we resort to become spiderman!! Climb our way out!

Also, I suppose to watch Harry Potter with my friends but last minute my boss wants me to OT to rush a report. Lucky all my friends are still at home when I told them last minute cancel the outing. A bit pai seh.

And I just saw my supervisor's email that said my PhD thesis is back from review!!! Ahhhh!! Very scare. Dunno review say what. Got a nasty feeling now. Pray pray please let me pass!!!!!!!

IPPT

Today I took my IPPT and I passed!! Yeah!! Lucky my first station is chin-up so I can give out my best peformance. Cos last year my first station is sit up and it affected my chin-up station. For the rest of the 3 static stations, I did quite well. The 2.4km section, I did keep within my usual timing. Heh heh. But I think age really catching up on me. Really feel like dying after the run. Heh heh. Any way, I got incentive to spend for christmas. Ha ha!!

Bad luck!!!???

Today my boss is quite unlucky. Morning when driving to work, he knocked into a rear bumper of another car. Although nothing serious, the victim wants to repair and claim my boss insurance. Then he fell off his chair in the office. Tough luck. Another sad incident is that S700i has been phased out by M1! Sob sob! That means it is fated that I have to save my money or get M900 but only until next year March when my M1 contract is up.

Health and entertaining gadgets

Today I want to tell you some recent nice and not so expensive gadgets I came across lately which I find them quite nice.

1. Toothbrush Sanitizer.
Q: What is it?
A: A gadget using UV to kill bacteria living on your toothbrush.
Get from: Watson - $39.90. 2. i-Dog
Q: What is it?
A: A speaker that comes in a shape of a dog that you can plug your mp3 player in with.
Get from: Vpost - $69.90

Cordless phone

Today just bought a cordless phone for about $95 after a 5% discount using the Harvey Norman card. I dunno if the brand, Uniden, is good or not. I bought it as it is the only model in the shop that supports earpiece. I want a cordless phone with earpiece reason is that I can chat while working in front of my computer. Last time, I bought 1 about 1 year ago and it went crazy in less than 6 months! Hope that this new one dun fail me. Now I am charging it. Heh heh.

Stuff

Today I got a free copy of November issue Stuff magazine from Harvey Norman. I got this complementary issue due to I apply for Citibank Harvey Norman Mastercard. After looking through, I feel this magazine is quite good introducing some of the coolest gadgets out there. It cost $6 per issue. But if I subscribe and pay using Citibank Harvey Norman card, it cost only $3 per issue which is a whopping 50% discount! So now I am considering taking up this offer.

IES Award Certificate

Today IES has hand delievered the IES Prestigious Engineering Achievement Awards certificate to my company. The cert looks quite nice. It is packed nicely into a A4 size black folder. The front cover of the folder has IES logo and title written in gold. When open, you can see the cert in a clear holder. It is very nicely typed and the setting is neat! Going to put somewhere very obvious in my room. Ha ha!

Sony Ericsson

Today just got a Sony Ericsson K300i for my mum. This phone is quite light and nice. It is quite a good basic phone. VGA cam, mp3 ringtones, video recording etc.. All these features for $0! Ha ha! I got it free with Singtel 2 years plan. Then I went to M1 to see Sony Ericsson S700i. Guess what? Within 2 days, the price has fallen for another $100!! Now selling for $298! I confirm getting this phone 2 weeks later. Just to wait for my friend to come back from abroad and we will go together.

Tonino Lamborghini

Today I just collected my Tonino Lamborghini watch which is given to me free by DBS. I have applied the black card and use it within 2 weeks and I got this watch for free. The watch is said to worth $360. But I left look, right look, up look, down look, front look, back look also dun feel this watch worth that much. Heh heh. But who cares. People give me free I take loh. Ha ha! Nothing to lose. No good hor! Too greedy.

Gadgets!!

I have compiled a list of things I feel like buying for the next 1 year. I try to control myself to spend on such things as I feel I always buy them on impulse and dun use them often just like my mp3 player. Ha ha! Any way, now and in future I might post some nice gadgets or things I come across. Some are not the latest stuffs but maybe 1 year old or more products. Just that I feel the price now is reasonable to get.

1. Sony Ericsson S700i. $398 - M1. 2. Mitsubishi M900. $298 - Singtel.

3. Lars & Ivan Bobo designer Hi-Fi. $269 - DBS.

IES Award

Just came back from attending the IES 39th Annual Dinner and Dance. I was invited by Institute of Engineers Singapore to attend this event as my team project has been awarded with IES Prestigious Engineering Achievement Awards. It is held at the 6 stars hotel, Ritz-Carlton Singapore. This event requires us to wear lounge suit and my friends all said I look good in suit. Ha ha! This year 4 projects have been selected and the grand prize goes to PUB. The guest-of-honour for this event is the Minister for National Development, Mr Mah Bow Tan. He looks the same as you would see him on TV. No diff except that I expect him to be a bit taller. Heh heh.

Club

Today I just joined 2 clubs. The first one is Safra Club. There is a promotion now which if sign up you will get a 128MB mp3 player. Moreover, the fee is quite cheap. 4.5 years only cost $112.80 which works out to be around $2 per month!! There are 5 club houses and you can go to use the swimming pool for free. Other facilities you need to pay a bit more though. The second club I applied is the NTU Alumni Club. This club is slightly more expensive but affordable. The entrance fee is $800. It is considered cheap as compared to NUS, SP etc.. club house. The monthly fee is around $42. The new club house will not be ready by next year first quarter. But now you can go and use the other 2 club houses.

Flightplan

I just came back from watching the movie Flightplan at Great World City Golden Village. The tickets were given free by Citibank for Dividend card holder. The show was to start at 6.45pm. When I reached there at around 6.25pm, tonnes of people already queuing up at the entrance as it was free seating. I went to the toilet for a while and thinking of joining the queue when I am done. To my surprise, the queue was gone as the door to the cinema was opened. So I quickly rushed in thinking I will be seating at some lousy places. But my worry was were unfounded cos the cinema was so huge and empty. Haha! Any way, the show is acted by Jodie Foster and I feel it is quite nice and exciting except a bit of unconvincing plot. Overall, not too bad.

I-mode

Just got an email from Starhub inviting me to take up the i-mode. They offer me
- free i-mode content subscription,
- free unlimited i-mode data usage,
- free price plan subscription and
- free caller display and international roaming.

So I decided to give it a try although I need to purchase a handphone set for $188 which is the only phone left - NEC N411i.

Credit card

Today I just received my DBS Amex Black Card. Lately I am a bit crazy in applying credit card. I have 3 more cards under processing. The reason I applied so many cards is not because I want to show off or trying to get myself in debts. I just wish to try out the different kinds of card. Also different card has different uses. Since first year fee is free, I might as well take the advantage of trying them out. If really within a year I did not use that card, I will terminate it.

Creative Zen Micro MP3 Player

Today I got the 6GB Creative Zen Micro MP3 player from my friend. After playing it for a while, I feel it is quite a nice product. The features are rather good. But it has a fair share of flaws as well. Firstly. the touch pad is so hard to use! Very frustrated initately. Now a bit better at using it. Next is the FM radio quality. Not clear at all! Lastly would be the software. It hanged on me once. Luckily, the sound quality for MP3 is good. I hope it dun give me any more problems.

Presentation skills

Today I attended a course on presentation skills. This course is a rather interative course where the trainees get to talk most of the time. Meaning I have to do 4 presentations today! Very nervous! My heart beats so fast that it nearly stop. I think until now I still cannot recover from this "excitedness". Tomorrow another 2 more presentations to go. Although it is fun, this feeling is killing me!

After the course, I went to collect my free Swatch watch! Yeah. It is a free gift by DBS as I signed up the DBS cashline services. Oh man, I feel all these things are really encouraging me to spend money! I think I have been a lot of spending money these days. But well, that is the joy of spending your own hard-earned money! Heh heh. My friend is selling me his rather new 6GB Creative Zen Micro MP3 Player for $280. I think I should be buying from him. End of the year me going to change a new mobile phone. Argh!!!! Money no enough!

Visa Platinum

After an uneventful week, today finally got something to share. I just received my DBS Visa Platinum Card. Heh heh. Looks nice but annual fee not cheap. $240 per year. I think I might be start using it cos I just got a piece of news from my brother. My father needs to undergo more treatment for the operation and this treatment will cost another $10k! So again, in Singapore you cannot afford to get ill!!

Operation

Today my father was discharged after staying 2 days at the hospital for a minor operation. Luckily, he discovered the illness himself and went for operation early. So now he is ok and need to follow up some more treatment. The doctor that operated on my father looks like our president. Ha ha! The total bill cost us around $12k. So in Singapore you cannot afford to get ill.

Stomp

Just finished watching the performance Stomp at the Esplanade. I bought the VIP seat and cost me $110. The location is quite good. I think next time I will buy VIP seat again. Any way, the performance is quite spectacular. They use all kind of everyday things to produce music. Tin can, matchstick, broom, lighter, plastic bag etc.. You name it, they have it. Best of all is that there is direct interaction between the performers and the audience. They lead us and get us involved a bit in their performance. Overall, this show lasted about slightly less than 2 hours. Good show.