2011

2011: just a year between 2010 and 2011.

started the year off with a great experience as a linesman for the singapore atp challenger series (now i know how hard the pros serve). trained damn hard again for MSER and ARR and the team(s) achieved the best results ever like in the history of the unit; thanks guys for teaching me how to stand strong in the face of adversity and rise above seemingly insurmountable odds. needless to say, i smashed my own 2.4km record again, though i only achieved a silver cos of the sickening sbj. went overseas again for work in april; great exposure and experience which reinforced my belief and passion for the job (except for the sickening sbj though). went through 2 "watershed" elections - both times the results did not turn out the way i would have liked, but that's democracy for you and well done to aljunied! along the way i was also posted out to another unit; would not have minded to stay in my previous post but i did not want to be pigeon-holed into a particular niche and thus make it even more difficult for me to be posted out further down the road. and did i mention the 2 accidents that i had unfortunately got myself into? both times, same circumstances, same disastrous results. grah. i need to check my blind spots quicker. on the sporting front, i played a lot more tennis this year and had the chance to participate in quite a number of overseas friendlies (ipoh, batam, penang). maybe one day we might just make it to roland garros! =) also did my first triathlon after 2 years at PD; now i remember again why i fell in love with the sport back in 07. PD12, i'll definitely be back! the big trip of the year has to be north korea; looking back i'm glad i made it there before kim jong il's last hurrah - things will just not be the same without Dear Leader.

and now we're staring right straight at 2012 in the eye. 2011 had been a year of many firsts; nothing sensational nor revolutionary but probably just an evolution of how things were in 2010. somehow, i have a feeling that some bigger things are going to happen in 2012.

bring it on!

merry christmas 2011

in the vein of the arab spring and occupy wall street protests, have yourself a very merry made-in-china christmas! =)

haus hunting

recently, i have started looking for a place of my own (cannot stay with parents forever mah). for those who have done it before, kudos. for those who have yet to do so, good luck.

because finding the perfect house in singapore is like striking the lottery. for all practical reasons, i am only coming from the average everydayman's viewpoint here since a well-to-do person can use his wealth to mitigate the difficulties that i am going to list down below.

first of all, there is the BTO lucky draw. if you're lucky enough to even get chosen to select a flat, chances are that you will probably have to settle for some place in the outskirts of singapore. you may argue that no where is too far anyway since singapore is only that large, but nothing can be further than the truth than that. our public transport system is patchy at best; it is efficient only if you live near the transport hubs, and only to a certain extent. connecting buses seem to take forever to come, and trains are not as reliable as they seem after the recent breakdown saga. even the BTO's only saving grace that they are cheaper than resale flats have been diluted due to the current practice of pegging BTO prices to market value.

and if you are one of the successful ones in the balloting exercise, congratulations - you only have to wait for another 4-5 years for your house keys!

second, resale. this option gives you the opportunity to choose relatively larger houses in mature estates, but oh - the COV has become somewhat a means of legal extortion. coupled with unavoidable agent and renovation fees, a resale flat might cost more than an arm, a leg, and maybe your firstborn son. and just like men, all the nice units have already been taken up. the good but unsold ones are probably haunted or loanshark-marked; leaving only the lousy ones on the market.

looking at this rate, i think it'll be a long time before i become a flat owner in singapore.

i shot the sheriff, but i didn't shoot the blogspot

its not my fault.

really.

ok, other than really being quite busy with life and 1001 other things recently, i do not think that i had done anything criminal. it is difficult not to be seduced when you have a platform that continuously feeds you live updates of your friends and their friends and their friends' friends, and another service which encourages you to be succinct in 140 words.

yes, ladies and gentlemen, i am sad to announce that facebook and twitter killed the blog. in a society where situations get overtaken by new events faster than the next britney spears scandal, and mobile apps that foster an an-update-a-minute culture, who can blame me for not updating as frequently as i would like here? afterall, anything posted here would probably just be a rehash (but probably also more well-thought out) of what i posted earlier on some other social network.

i admit there are still cases of bloggers going strong, but i guess those are the ones who have also incorporated other elements of social networking into their blogs to remain relevant and interesting. or that they just write damn well.

either way, i'm sorry that i've not been updating la merde en direct as much as i would have liked. it started out as a way for me to document my life, my travels, and other interesting things that i had noticed in the real or reel world. slowly, it became a place for me to rant and let off steam. now, it has reached its dying embers and i'm not sure how long can this go on.

perhaps we've reached the end of the road now blogster, and welcome to 140-word land.

wherefore art thou rain?

ladies and gentlemen of the class of '11,
if i could only offer you one webpage bookmark for the future,
nea's rain location website would be it.

especially when the monsoon season is upon us,
when we never know where is the next place that will have a once-in-50-year event,
when you are deciding whether or not to change from tennis to badminton,
this website has proven to be the only reliable source of meteorological information.

heck, its the only non-porn website i surf on a regular basis.

111111

hey i was here! once-in-every-1000 years moment. \^_^/

조선민주주의인민공화국

so north korea came and went. had been planning this since 2 years ago but there was some nuclear missile testing (what else?) in 2009 and i had my visa application rejected. i guess its not a place where most people would like to go to, but for me it was one of the more memorable trips that i have been on.

i had always been politically leftist, and with the increasing number of countries "embracing" democracy (and consequently capitalism), north korea was my last chance to experience what the alternative would be. most of us must have read or seen about north korea in the media: about how cruel the regime is or how tough the living conditions are. well, in all fairness i must say that i was treated really well during my stay there. of course, its not MBS or RWS but it not a hellhole either. basic amenities were provided, the people were warm, and food was abundant. there was plenty of beer to go around too! yes, the itinerary was pretty much controlled and we were chaperoned everywhere but for me it was much better than walking around freely at some shopping mall or theme park.

anyway, i wish i could tell you fully how interesting it was and how much fun we had but unfortunately as the saying goes, a picture does indeed paint a thousand words, and for the benefit of my fingers here's the link to the photos: dprk, vladivostok and harbin.

...

chinup bar

this strangely reminds me of james.

homecoming of sorts

and.. i'm back! a blink of an eye and its already been 2 weeks in northeast asia / russia. of course, it felt like eternity when we were there, but now that we are back, i can't help but wish that we were still on holiday!

anyway more on that later, and photos will be up on facebook soon as well!

-----
the feeling of being cheated totally sucks, especially when you thought that your friend was really in legitimate trouble and needed help. sucks even more when that friend also turns out to be one of your superiors.

this issue had dragged on for far too long already, and now it seems like this might just be a bottomless pit with no end in sight. should i just forget it and move on? or should i pursue to the very end with no guarantee of a favourable conclusion? seems like damn if i do and damn if i don't.

stupid naive me: i actually believed that my friend would settle everything once and for all and that everything would be settled once i came back from holiday. well, right now he is uncontactable and might have even gone awol!

gah. a friend in need is a friend indeed; but never will i ever be so gullible again. =(

dprk

dear comrades, to the land of the free and plenty i go tomorrow!

see you in a fortnight's time!

endorsement

what's up for all the endorsements for tony tan these days?

seriously, does that guy even need people/unions to publicly declare their ass-licking for him to "win" the elections?

and what does it even mean for the unions that have endorsed him: does that mean that their members now have to lan-lan vote for him (which is why the ST keeps on citing the number of workers in every union), or they are still able to vote independently? i wonder if they did even hold a meeting within their respective unions to decide on who to endorse, or did the committees just decide on their behalf?

sigh, such is the pragmatism of singaporean politics: you scratch my back and i'll scratch yours later when i gain power.

-----

so much for a president who is above politics.
so much for a president who must be a unifying figure.
so much for a president who must accept and can only act on the advice of the cabinet.

you want a candidate with all of the above qualities? forget the tans; let me tell you who i feel has all of the above and more: our very own merlion!
above politics? check. one can say that it is apathetic even.
unifying figure? check. who doesn't know what the merlion is?
accept and only act on the advice of the cabinet? check. i mean, vomiting water is its only ability.

and the merlion will definitely cost less than any of the tans. sure, some money must still be put aside for periodic maintenance and polishing of all the fish scales, but i'm sure the total amount will still be peanuts as compared to what nathan is drawing now, and what the tans will draw in office in the future.

indeed, as the chairman of 110 bukit purmei road unit number 05-156 (total members: 3), i endorse the merlion for president as i believe that it will be able to listen to the voice of the people and think singaporeans first, thus being the heart of the nation to inspire confidence for the future. =)

hurry curry

同志们, welcome to curry weekend!

off the hook

oh, just when i was just wondering about this the other day, the verdict actually came out today: no further actions against tin.

pap 1 : transparency 0

now, let's see what will transpire from the ministerial salary review. funny how the public transport fee hike can be decided in a matter of 2 weeks, but the salary review has taken 2 months and counting with no answer in sight.

the unbearable lightness of coe

price of cat A certificate of entitlement: $48,801 (3 Aug 11)
deposit required to file nomination papers at presidential elections: $48,000

wow i'm not even sure which is worse: that it is cheaper to run for the elected presidency than to buy the right to buy a 1.6l car, or the fact that in singapore, anything and everything is for sale, if the price is right.

but wait. in rare occasions, its not only about the money. in singapore, before you can run for president you must even prove to the presidential elections council that you are worthy of doing so, by meeting some really stringent criteria. if you really do meet those requirements, the council will then issue you a certificate of eligibility, thus rendering you "eligible" for the presidential race.

i think in the future, they might do it king arthur style, where only the person who can carry the most babies / smile and wave simultaneously for the longest / make the most insipid of speeches is deserving to be our president.

if i were on the council, i would only award the certificate of eligibility to the great man who invented the certificate of entitlement. who better to lead singapore, than the one who displayed such great foresight to turn a simple vehicle ownership limiting system into a great revenue generator for the government over the years? when the government exhorts us to be more innovative and productive, i always have this person in mind: 100% returns for almost zero outlay, twice a month 24 times a year; even mbs and rws cannot lay claim to such ridiculous profit margins!

cos vs coe. uniquely singapore.

pricetag

fine for illegal modification of exhaust and rear light: $250
fine for beating red light: $200 + 12 demerit points
repair cost for taxi uncle: $700
repair cost for own car: $350 (panel beating) + $540 (headlight)
60k servicing: $907.20

total cost: priceless experience with VICOM/LTA and a better understanding of singapore's motor repair industry. would i want to experience it again? HELL NO.

i kissed a car

sometimes while driving i hear this chinese advert which goes: 当你的车kiss到我的车, 我不会跟你说 "i love you", 可是我会问你 “你是怎么驾车的@＃¥％⋯!!!”

after about 6 years of incident-free driving, i finally kissed someone today. and of all people, i had to kiss a cabbie.

was on my way for the DCM meeting at kranji when i rear-ended the aforementioned taxi at the junction of ite west and teck whye estate. i was executing a right turn when the bugger jam braked at the lights due to some pedestrians crossing the road, and the rest is history.

toyota crown 1 : vw golf gti 0

fortunately the taxi driver was quite nice and suggested that we settle the incident privately. we agreed upon a sum, went to the atm, i passed him the money, we both signed the settlement form, and it was over. however, the same cannot be said for the gti, who as i type, is sitting lonely in a workshop in toh tuck, waiting to have its headlights replaced, panels beaten, and front bumper spray painted and polished.

i still remember the time that i crashed my friend's dad's car just 3 days after obtaining my license. it was much worse then: 3-car pileup along the AYE near normanton. i didn't even have my license card at that time; just a pass slip, which shocked the other 2 drivers. =P this time, when me and the aforementioned cabby exchanged particulars, i was strangely amused to find out that his car plate number was SHB9520B. why? because i am SFQ9519B! what a coincidence.

so anyway, it seems like this is the latest in a series of unfortunate (traffic) events for me, after my exhaust and red light incidents. for the sake of my sanity and my wallet, i certainly hope that this is the last!!! =(

homesick

wow i wish that i could have been back home in Grenoble last sat as the Tour stopped by for the ITT!

and what's more, the route passed by some of my favourite bike trials as well. =)

can't believe that this used to be my usual cycling loop

to transport minister lui tuck yew

dear transport minister Sir,

i hope you've noticed that your ministry (and by association, your various stat boards) had been in the spotlight lately.

first, it was due to the deteriorating service standards of public transport, specifically the MRT network, due to overcrowding and insufficient trains.

then, it was the announcement that the transport operators had (yet!) applied for another price hike (what timing after elections!).

today, i read that COEs had hit $72,501 in the latest bidding exercise.

i would humbly like to remind you that you were appointed as minister of transport, not minister of elite transport, or minister-in-charge of increasing our national reserves. increasingly, it seems that we peasants are being penalised for wanting to travel around singapore, whether through private or public means.

i know that there is no panacea to singapore's transportation woes, but i believe that you, and the government, can do more for us. yes, i do see that LTA and SMRT are building the additional MRT and expressway lines now, but that should have been done a few years ago, even before the government decided to open its gates to the world.

and why the abrupt turnarounds in policy? in 98, PM announced that he would try his best to let every household own a car. ok, credit has to be given to PM for boldly promising that, and also to LTA for somehow allowing that to happen in the boom years from 04 - 09. but now, it seems that his promises has faded away, only to be replaced by the highest-bidder-wins system again. i do agree that in space congested singapore, car ownership is not for every household, but i do also feel that the COE bidding system should be changed to an allocation system instead.

let me expound on this: like what PM said in 98, every household should have the chance to own a car. for the sake of discussion, let the "car" be a motorcycle, goods vehicle, or private car. COE should still be implemented, but maybe it can be at a fixed rate of say, $30k (Jul 2011 values). the interesting part comes when first time owners pay 100% of this COE, second time owners pay 150%, third time owners 200%, and so on and so forth unless they can prove to LTA why they need to have more than one car in singapore. for households who really have a need to own a car, for e.g. have a handicapped or elderly member, they should pay only from 0% to 50% of the COE. COE should not be seen as a revenue generator for the government, but rather, whatever is generated from the COE scheme should be used to subsidise public transport. this will make public transport a lot cheaper, and make it a lot more attractive proposition for private transport owners, thus achieving the government's KPI of converting private transport users to public transport.

my second proposition is that taxis should not be required to participate in the COE bidding process. why? they are supposed to form part of the public transport ecosystem and thus, why are they required to bid for the right to drive on the roads? this will only make taxi fares more expensive and encourage private transport. worse, they also artificially drive up COE prices.

lastly, what is the use of a transport minister when he has no control over any means of transport? it is laughable that you can only be only a mediator between the two transport operators SMRT and SBS, just because they have been privatised. you can say all you want, but at the end of the day, all SMRT and SBS have to say is that they "have to account to the shareholders", and you are screwed.

as you were newly appointed, you may set your own KPIs or tweak existing policies, but when doing so, please remember that it is singaporeans' lives that you are experimenting with; we do not need any more yo-yo policies which only cause more anxiety than initial relief. think of the common good when you go to parliament, consider taking back the control of SMRT and SBS, and most importantly, use your heart to feel for the people.

because if you do not, all those statements you made about the state of public transport in singapore (and about taking public transport) would amount to nothing.

yours sincerely,
Jeremy

你好不好？

很想知道你近况 我听人说 还不如你对我讲
经过那段遗憾 请你放心 我变得更加坚强
世界不管怎样荒凉 爱过你就不怕孤单

我想你一定喜欢 现在的我 学会了你最爱的开朗
想起你的模样 要什麼错 还不能够被原谅
世界不管怎样荒凉 爱过你就不怕孤单

虽然离开了你的时间 一起还漫长 我们总能补偿
因为中间空白的时光 如果还能分享 也是一种浪漫
关系虽然不再一样 关心却怎能说断就断

我最亲爱的 你过的怎麼样
没我的日子 你别来无恙
依然亲爱的 我没让你失望
让我亲一亲 像亲人一样

像亲人一样

singapore dreaming

record $128,000 COV for HDB flat in bukit batok
cat B COE prices hit $68,000
hawker prices continue to rise

at times, i think that communism is not all that bad.

frust.

haikus are easy,
but sometimes they are just a
bit misunderstood.

l'albatros

souvent, pour s’amuser, les hommes d’équipage
prennent des albatros, vastes oiseaux des mers,
qui suivent, indolents compagnons de voyage,
le navire glissant sur les gouffres amers.

à peine les ont-ils déposés sur les planches,
que ces rois de l’azur, maladroits et honteux,
laissent piteusement leurs grandes ailes blanches
comme des avirons traîner à côté d’eux.

ce voyageur ailé, comme il est gauche et veule!
lui, naguère si beau, qu’il est comique et laid!
l’un agace son bec avec un brûle-gueule,
l’autre mime, en boitant, l’infirme qui volait!

le Poète est semblable au prince des nuées
qui hante la tempête et se rit de l’archer;
exilé sur le sol au milieu des huées,
ses ailes de géant l’empêchent de marcher.

- charles baudelaire (1821 - 1867)

loop-de-loop

so what have you been biking lately? =)

go on,

yep like you fuckin' don't even give a damn

à rebours

7 days..
and he's back!!!

the countdown begins once again. =)

awol

hey there, yes i'm still alive; thanks for asking.

just that i've been to busy living life and having fun - sorry if i've neglected you in the midst of doing so.

oh no please don't take it the wrong way and think that you're not important. you are. its just that there are more pressing issues like tennis balls to be hit, beers to be drunk, roads to be run, bikes to be ridden, movies to be watched, wines to be savoured, songs to be sung, books to be read, lovers to be romanced, idols to be cheered on, friends to be accompanied and oh, work to be done.

but don't worry, i'll be back! you take care of yourself in the meantime; do update as often as you can, and i'll try to do the same as well. =)

carpe diem!

unsunday

rain rain go away,
come again another day.

sigh what a perfectly good tennis-and-brunch day ruined by the seemingly-neverending deluge. grah.

ah nevermind. you can't change the weather but you can change your mood! at least its still a sunday and its the french open finals tonight!!! ¡vamos rafa!

ta main

tu sais que j’ai du mal,
encore à parler de toi,
il parait que c’est normal,
il n’y a pas de règles dans ces jeux là.

tu sais j’ai la voix qui se serre,
quand je te croise dans les photos,
tu sais j’ai le cœur qui se perd,
je crois qu’il te pense un peu trop.

c’est comme ça,
c’est comme ça.

j'aurais aimé tenir ta main,
un peu plus longtemps..
j'aurais aimé tenir ta main,
un peu plus longtemps..
j'aurais aimé que mon chagrin,
ne dure qu’un instant.
et tu le sais j’espère au moins,
que tu m’entends.

c’est dur de briser le silence,
même dans les cris, même dans la fête,
c’est dur de combattre l’absence,
car cette conne n’en fait qu’à sa tête.

et personne ne peut comprendre,
on a chacun sa propre histoire.
on m'a dit qu’il fallait attendre,
que la peine devienne dérisoire.

je voulais te dire que j’étais fier,
d’avoir été au moins un jour,
un peu ton ami et ton frère,
même si la vie a ses détours.

j'aurais aimé tenir ta main,
un peu plus longtemps..
j'aurais aimé tenir ta main,
un peu plus longtemps..
j'aurais aimé que mon chagrin,
ne dure qu’un instant.
et tu le sais j’espère au moins,
que tu m’entends.

is it even worth it?

actually i think not.

greenhouse cabinet

so the new cabinet has been announced. and going by the look of things, it seems that PM lee had taken quite the green approach when appointing his ministers!

don't believe me? well, take a look at some of his captain-planet-inspired decisions:

reduce
the total number of full-fledged ministers has decreased from 14 to 11, with the exodus of mah bow tan, raymond lim, wong kan seng and george yeo, and with the appointment of heng swee keat as the new education minister.

reuse
shanmugam is now law minister AND foreign minister.
tharman is now DPM, finance minister, manpower minister AND also chairman of the MAS.
teo chee hean is now DPM, home affairs minister, co-ordinating minister for national security AND also in-charge of the public service division, the national population and talent division and the national climate change secretariat (see what i mean by going green?).
as for PM himself, in addition to his primary role, he is also the chairman of the GIC.

recycle
MM lee is now a senior advisor to the GIC.
SM goh is now also a senior advisor to the GIC, and also appointed as emeritus (???) senior minister.
ex-health minister khaw boon wan is now minister for national development.
ex-manpower minister gan kim yong is now health minister.
ex-minister for environment and water resources yaacob is now minister for information, communication and the arts.
ex-minister for information, communication and the arts lui tuck yew is now transport minister AND second minister for foreign affairs.
ex-community development, youth and sports minister vivian is now the new minister for environment and water resources.
ex-education minister ng eng hen is now defence minister.

maybe the PAP should change their logo to a green crop circle with a green lightning-shaped carrot as well to symbolise their new earth-friendly outlook.

sad days

and no beer either! =(

utility

"Democracy is the name we give the people whenever we need them." - Marquis de Flers Robert and Arman de Caillavet.

so says the ruling party.

housevisit

how come i want and i wish and i beg and i pray and i still don't get to meet my SMC candidates despite the many times that they have come by my house (and my mom staunchly refuses to open the door to any of them) just because i am out working and contributing to the GDP to pay for my ministers?

i think i need to stay at home more often.

watershed

oh my it seems like eons ago that i last updated my blog.

but its all for a good reason: elections. for something that rolls about only once in every five years, how can i miss it?

i remember attending rallies since i was 17, at the 2001 general elections. then, i was just a curious 17 year old traipsing rally onto rally without any particular ideology nor support for any party. all i knew then, was that chiam see tong and low thia khiang were the only opposition candidates. well, at least it still made for some exciting after-school excursions.

in 2006, i was more aware of my political leanings. i had not exactly been dormant for the past five years since 2001, having been to a couple of the WP youth wing meetings, but i guess laziness had gotten to me since i did not offer to volunteer nor attend those meetings regularly. but what the opposition (i much prefer the term alternative) had to offer/say struck a chord in me as an ordinary singaporean. but that was the year that social media started to influence the way election news were reported, and perceived by people. i remember being at the hougang rallies; 120,000 of us were cheering for the things WP had to say. the whole stadium was packed and it was difficult getting a parking lot even 2km away! i also remember being at chua chu kang stadium, when chee soon juan was still the sec-gen of the old SDP, people yelling "down with PAP". i remember old men crying after chiam see tong was done with his speech, just because he had really 讲出他们的心声.

this year, i'm sure many of you had already read all that you can read from the numerous blog posts, facebook updates, and online articles; i'm not going to add anymore noise into the cacophony. this GE, as you would have heard, is a watershed election for the opposition: win some, or lose it all. it is also a watershed election for me too, in some ways. for one, i had made it a point to attend all the opposition rallies. secondly, i had also spoken at length to the people around me, trying to convince them to make their vote count, and educating them that their vote is secret and that they should vote who they feel can best understand and represent them in cabinet. lastly, i also feel a lot more optimistic about the opposition cause. because they have managed to pull themselves together to contest at least 82 out of the 87 seats, because they are a lot more credible as compared to 5 or 10 years ago, but also mainly because they have stood up for us, spoken out for us, and also sacrificed themselves for us. even if you do not agree with what they say, i feel that, in singapore's context, that they should do at least deserve a round of applause for offering themselves to the public's cause.

your vote on 7 may will affect how we are governed for the next 5 years; vote wisely, and remember, your vote is SECRET. =)

lessons to learn from borders

saw this on mrbrown.com and i thought that it was quite apt to my industry as well. this letter is an open letter to the CEO of Borders, before the company computers were turned off for good. this letter is an empty cry to all those sitting in upper management level, policy makers, and also company leaders: can you see what we are facing on the ground? and honestly, do you even care?

all i hope is that i do not have to write this in another 4 years time.

Today is my last day with the company. After 23 years I thought I would be sad but am in fact relieved. The Borders most of us loved closed down years ago and it was a slow death by a thousand cuts each time another great GM, DM or RD was forced out.

I am the last GM from Dion country in Florida. We were a tight group and were consistently the highest performing district in the company, developing many processes and procedures that were rolled out to the entire company. Sure we did question the status quo with questions like (7 years ago) "whats our plan to deal with digital music?" and were seriously told not to worry about it, it would never effect us. Some of us were let go for not being better lemmings… some of us stuck around in the hope that it would get better, some of us left with their actual dignity.

As each of our stores closed down this month we kept our staffs motivated with our own limited money. We bought pizza, had parties, bought fresh sharpies to follow your ridiculous procedure. Even though we would all soon be unemployed with no severance and living in a state with the highest unemployment rate and worst benefits. Our staff trusted us and did their best and deserved better than what the company was giving so yeah, we took up the slack that's what proper leaders do.

Every new regional VP insisted the economy was no excuse. We in the store were obviously failures in the company's eyes. In our eyes our leaders were failures. A cacophony of yes men that woudn't take a stand and fight for the things that could have saved us and were too proud to listen to anyone in the field.

You had great success with your plans this year: outsource customer care, pull bargain from the vestibules during the holiday season, not purchase school reading titles, cut hours and increase workload, roll out more functionality in atlas that barely functioned to begin with, discount excessively to buy loyalty, create an environment that managed to an audit at the expense of all else, and under-develop a web presence that demotivated the staff and frustrated the customers.

Yes, you and your team should be proud of all you have accomplished. Only a few more stores to go and you will reach your goal of total annihilation. For that and all you have done to degrade, torment, abuse and demoralize us please by all means keep my 23 years of severance and add it to your bonus. You deserve it. Be sure to keep two gold pieces for your ferry ride to hell.

Renee
Tampa, Florida

heartfelt

saw this on a t-shirt today:

"i love the fucking army.
and the army loves fucking me."

♥

value system

sometimes i wonder what matters at the end of the day.

we can be as big as our dreams, but sometimes our best just ain't good enough: then what do we do?

do we deny everything and run away? or do we dream bigger and fulfill our destinies? or do we just settle for second best and contend ourselves with the remaining spoils of war?

as we age, the phenomenon of life makes us realise that we are no longer as invincible as we thought we were, not the white horses we were supposed to be, not the chosen one certainly.

nope. you can jolly well get that sort of thoughts right out of your mind right now this minute, young man. this is life and life is unfair so just accept the rules; the sooner you reach a compromise, the better life is. no two ways about it.

on the road again

after 20 odd hours of traveling, i find myself in yet another oh-so-familiar foreign hotel room. a place to rest my weary head and to stretch my cramped-in-cattle-class legs.

but well at least this hotel's nice. at the rate i'm (or rather, the taxpayers) paying, it had better be nice. no complains really.

even managed to catch the not-yet-released norwegian wood on the plane. singaporeair charges a lot, but at least they know what they are charging for.

there are restaurants here which open 365 days a year, 7 days a week and 24 hours a day. amazing. i had myself the largest philly steak sandwich in one of those joints just now. as the restaurant was already full when i got there, i had no choice but to sit at the bar counter where the starkness of my aloneness stared back at me from the many bottles of alcohol lined up like prisoners on death row.

phrawrrrr!!!

i swear i am going mad from all that work.

high flyer

just sent my car in for 45k servicing yesterday, but the mileage was actually 49++k.

i was thinking, "wow my car was registered only on feb 09, so how was it possible that i had driven almost 50,000km in 2 years?" and mind you, out of those two years, i was overseas for at least four months! (japan, germany, egypt, germany)

so after doing a quick calculation [49000km / (30 days per month on average x 20 months)] = 81.67km = how the hell did i clock that much mileage on a country that measures just 42km by 24km?

by signing on, that's how. i mean, if your camp is in sungei gedong, then i mean its quite obvious already.

tr(ee)

i was driving to camp the other day when i saw this huge tree along the tengah highway which had all its leaves and branches pruned. i had wanted to take a photo, but obviously i was unable to stop so abruptly and plus i did not have a camera with me. in any case the tree looked something like the one in this photo i found on the net.

what was unusual was that it seemed to be the only tree in the vicinity to have been pruned in such a "cruel" fashion. indeed, to me it hardly seemed like a tree anymore! so that got me thinking as well:

why do defining characteristics matter so much? and does that mean that a person/thing's worth is reduced when he/she/it no longer possess those characteristics?

2 be or not 2 be

Show encrypted text

inflation blues

you know that inflation has really hit the top in singapore when wala discontinues its since-time-immemorial 1-for-1 happy hour promo.

i was so shocked that the waiter had to inform me about it a few times before i could finally register the info.

me: "6 pints of tetleys, serve 2 now and hold 10"
waiter: "erm.. Sir we no longer have the 1-for-1 happy hour promo, just happy hour prices"
me: "serve 2 now and hold 10 please"
waiter: "but the 1-for-1 happy hour promo is no longer valid"
me: "what do you mean? i ordered 6 and its before 9 so i should get 12 beers"
waiter: "the 1-for-1 happy hour promo is no longer valid"
me: "but its before 9.. WHAT!!!"

food prices increase, i can eat less. petrol price increase, i can step lighter on the accelerator. but beer price increase?

i.am.so.seriously.fucked.now

beer addiction

i swear its not my fault.

irreligious

was browsing for innovation books in the library the other day, when i came across a book on religion. for the most part, it was about a conversation between an old man and a young man. what the book title is, and who the author is, is less interesting than the point that the fictional old man makes:

The old man leaned toward me, resting a blanketed elbow on the arm of his rocker.

“Four billion people say they believe in God, but few genuinely believe. If people believed in God, they would live every minute of their lives in support of that belief. Rich people would give their wealth to the needy. Everyone would be frantic to determine which religion was the true one. No one could be comfortable in the thought that they might have picked the wrong religion and blundered into eternal damnation, or bad reincarnation, or some other unthinkable consequence. People would dedicate their lives to converting others to their religions.

“A belief in God would demand one hundred percent obsessive devotion, influencing every waking moment of this brief life on earth. But your four billion so-called believers do not live their lives in that fashion, except for a few. The majority believe in the usefulness of their beliefs—an earthly and practical utility—but they do not believe in the underlying reality.”

I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. “If you asked them, they’d say they believe.”

“They say that they believe because pretending to believe is necessary to get the benefits of religion. They tell other people that they believe and they do believer-like things, like praying and reading holy books. But they don’t do the things that a true believer would do, the things a true believer would have to do.

“If you believe a truck is coming toward you, you will jump out of the way. That is belief in the reality of the truck. If you tell people you fear the truck but do nothing to get out of the way, that is not belief in the truck. Likewise, it is not belief to say God exists and then continue sinning and hoarding your wealth while innocent people die of starvation. When belief does not control your most important decisions, it is not belief in the underlying reality, it is belief in the usefulness of believing.”

“Are you saying God doesn’t exist?” I asked, trying to get to the point.

“I’m saying that people claim to believe in God, but most don’t literally believe. They only act as though they believe because there are earthly benefits in doing so. They create a delusion for themselves because it makes them happy.”

“So you think only the atheists believe their own belief?” I asked.

“No. Atheists also prefer delusions,” he said.

me right now

nothing is working. fml.

streaming

its never too early to choose: science or arts stream?

two of a kind

so i caught the kids are all right, the movie that recently has all of singapore's conservatives up in arms because it supposedly promotes a homosexual lifestyle by portraying the central characters, a pair of lesbians, as being able to have happy, functional relationships.

it was serious enough that the censors only allowed a single print run for the movie, which meant that the movie was only allowed to be screened at one cinema. sheesh.

in any case, i was happy to see that the cinema was filled to the max. was it more of hype and commotion or cinephilic interest, i am not sure, but it sure is heartwarming and consoling to see that people are not as homophobic as the government.

the film was alright and the plot was ok, save for the part where the sperm donor paul decides to leave his hot african girlfriend for one of the lesbian mothers. i mean, seriously? you expect me to believe that? haha. and rather than seeing how potentially damaging homosexual relationships are (according to many christians and the government), i saw the beauty of long-term relationships, and also the challenges involved in maintaining one. how it is important not to take any one for granted, and to remember people for their good points, rather than their bad. i am also now more than ever convinced that everyone has a right, regardless of sexual orientation, to build and sustain meaningful family relationships.

sometimes i am ashamed, because these supposed "abominations of nature" can do so much better than the rest of us "normal" people. sigh.

me against the virus

i need to get ready for mser tomorrow, you bitch.

reflection of myself

thanks to jh, i am now hooked on ymfy as well.

amazingly enough, i found myself right on the first post. an excerpt:

"
In the beginning, everything about them will excite you. Their opinions on Woody Allen (GIVE ME MORE!), their upbringing, their aspirations: it will all be riveting. Study them like an archaeologist would study bones.

...

Two months go by. You go to work, you go to your lover, and you go to dinner with your friends to talk about your lover. “It just feels nice to have somebody, you know? Whatever we have, it’s normal. It’s refreshing.” Say these words over and over even if you don’t know what they exactly mean. [truncated]

And then things begin to dissolve into crumpled wrapping paper. You start to get annoyed at them for things that would’ve made you smile two months earlier. [...] Think about who your lover really is. Know every little detail of their life, about their strained relationship with their mother, about the time they cried in front of a convenience store. Know it all and begin to understand that it doesn’t mean shit.

(and) Their anger will turn you on and you’ll respond, “I’m not incapable of loving. I’m just incapable of loving you.”
"

indeed. its not even the beginning yet but i can already see the end coming.

bahget 2011

so you have it. budget 2011. how was it for you? did it meet your expectations? could the government have done more? or have they done too much?

for me, the budget was the same as every other year. cold, calculated, and convenient.

the government had pledged to help low and middle income families with the rising costs of living. their solution? a one-time off $100 to $800 "grow and share" package. what? you mean after a bumper year of 14.5% (oft cited, but actual value needs to be further substantiated in another post) growth, a one-time shot in the arm is enough to help all singaporeans? logic will tell you that keeping costs low, and not disbursing financial assistance, will be more helpful to the everyday singaporean. simply because $800 today will be worth $700 tomorrow, and probably even less the year after given our crazy inflation rate nowadays. but cash in the bank is always good, especially with myopic singaporean and the elections round the corner.

as expected, most of the budget initiatives also came from cpf top-ups. how convenient! by doing this, the government can pass off the illusion of helping the people without actually having to draw on its coffers. because as we all know, cpf money is virtual money. you know, sort of like a walt disney cartoon: comforting to see that sum in your cpf bank account, but you know that you can never touch it until the day you die. i think the only person who has benefited from this portion of the budget is our dear cpf chairwoman herself, ms ho ching.

the only part of the budget which i agreed with was the abolition of the radio and television license fees. finally! this should give mediacorpse some wake-up call and hopefully kick them on their asses to produce some shows that can actually be watch-able.

so while you go out and celebrate and count your blessings, the larger question remains: is this the best that the government can do? i thought that they could have done more, especially when mr tharman announced that the government was putting $4b back into the reserves. cut back financial aid? curtail government spending? yes, if public spending is in deficit. but i guess we are so uniquely singaporean that we have to be "responsible and prudent" even in good times. certainly, i do not wish for us to be too extravagant, but a little bit more tangible reward would not break the bank either.

and lest you forget, you forgetful singaporeans, the public transport fare review exercise and gst increase are upcoming. you think you can get your money so easily? ha! wait long long.. =P

on why we need to keep housing prices low

the friends around me are all starting to get married, so sometimes they talk about property. which had somewhat piqued my interest as well. in housing prices, not marriage. so anyway, i was horrified that it costs $562,000 nowadays to afford a NEW 5-room flat (120 sqm, dbss) in amk nowadays. 30 years ago, the same flat would cost like $70,000, $100,000 max.

well even taking into account inflation of about 3% a year since 1980, that is still like a 500% increase in hdb prices! but salaries have only at most, doubled in numerical value for the averageman since then.

for its part, honest hdb had changed its mission statement from aiming to provide low cost housing to "affordable" housing for the general populace. but what is affordable? in no way does a $500,000 30-year mortgage sound like affordable to me!

so now, there is a lot of talk about all the problems plaguing singapore, like our low TFR, foreign competition, rising cost of living, and i have figured that the most effective solution would be to tackle the root cause, which is to keep housing (and specifically public housing) prices low, because:

- young couples cannot afford to buy houses, how to get married?
- no marry no babies.
- no babies means more foreign talent.
- more foreign talent means artificially depressed wages.
- rich get richer, poor get poorer.

as a result, those who eventually settle down and have a family in singapore would find that they have extinguished their cpf savings paying for their mortgage by the time their children are of university-going age. so what happens now? their children probably would take a loan from the bank to finance their studies, get into debt even before they graduate, and then the entire cycle starts again.

you may say that i'm whining, just complaining but not suggesting any solutions to solve the problem. but hey i'm not a million-dollar paid minister, so don't expect me to do the thinking for you.

open transfer window

time and space sure worked to the advantage of torres

feeling topsy and turvy this week. actually it started from last week, before cny. the incongruous sms from the pa enquiring if i would be free on the 7th for an interview was the first sign. i thought nothing much of it during the holidays - after all, this was the military and we all know what happens to rumoured postings right?

that's right, they stay as just that: rumours.

then i went for the interview and found out a bit more about the situation. i was still not hoping much for anything, because i had not heard anything firm yet from anyone. plus, i did not know how many other candidates were there for the post. were there other people vying for the post as well? was this just a weak attempt at "fair employment"? and, of all the people in the world, why in the world would they choose me?

but an email came, confirming that i had indeed been shortlisted (and possibly selected) for the post. with effect from XX 2011. yippee i thought, but i also wondered how in the world would i be able to make the move, especially with all the upcoming ops and with me being the only one around to see things through.

true enough, another email came swiftly enough, not to block but to postpone. well, ok its not that bad but now i think the post might go to someone else who can post in earlier because as a boss, how can you justify leaving a post vacant for several months while waiting for a particular chosen one to arrive? well, exceptions are possible if you are an overseas scholar, but i'm not and that's another story for another day.

sigh. i hate this time and space thing but it seems to be the reality everywhere.

hopping for good luck

in the new wabbit year! gongxifacai, hongbaonalai!!!

wow so fast and its already 初四; end of the long cny holidays and time to head back to work tomorrow.

but oh well at least its been a super 4 days of feasting and drinking and tennis and cycling and meeting relatives and watching movies and banluck and more drinking and drinking. and more to look forward to next weekend! haha. its been a great start to the year, now to carry the momentum forward! =)

if it keeps on raining..

.. i'm going to go out tomorrow to build an ark! who's with me?

unsung heroes

clad in grey and brown
from left to right, they cry "out"
when green misses white

same same but different

is it nice to be important,
or is is more important to be nice?

similarly.

is it important to love,
or is it more important to be loved?

lorem ipsum

lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. proin malesuada consectetur urna, non molestie lectus vehicula nec. maecenas eleifend lobortis felis, et egestas quam sodales ut. donec lacus mauris, posuere nec eleifend id, fringilla eget mi. maecenas tempor elit nec nunc faucibus blandit. nam metus purus, viverra ac laoreet ac, porta sit amet velit. class aptent taciti sociosqu ad litora torquent per conubia nostra, per inceptos himenaeos. mauris interdum, nulla vitae imperdiet mattis, nibh dui fermentum turpis, id consequat lectus lorem vel tortor. vivamus sodales tincidunt risus in dapibus. maecenas nisi odio, luctus at tincidunt non, aliquam eu urna. aliquam sodales consectetur diam, in pretium nisl ultrices nec. mauris sed massa ac elit dictum elementum. aenean quis nibh nec tortor sodales hendrerit. cras pretium sem fringilla eros scelerisque eget vestibulum ipsum egestas. etiam congue felis ac nulla dignissim dictum. proin nec purus in dolor suscipit gravida a tincidunt elit. vivamus rutrum porttitor lorem, venenatis malesuada nibh pellentesque vitae. donec laoreet mauris ut risus luctus aliquam. mauris sit amet lectus augue, vitae posuere mi. donec lacinia gravida justo, vitae rutrum augue adipiscing imperdiet.

maecenas consectetur pharetra ligula, ac ornare ligula euismod in. phasellus consequat, leo quis adipiscing molestie, risus dui viverra ipsum, ac elementum velit tortor eu lacus. nullam luctus mi vel velit lobortis porttitor. phasellus ullamcorper, tortor ac venenatis tempor, massa lorem consequat lectus, eu molestie ligula odio ut ante. nam vitae tortor leo, vel bibendum ipsum. vestibulum pretium varius velit venenatis ornare. aliquam tempus tincidunt consequat. fusce id justo in est eleifend ultrices. nullam auctor venenatis sagittis. aenean eget dolor sapien. donec blandit eros eget odio sodales non sagittis velit malesuada. aenean volutpat, est non tempus rutrum, metus ipsum congue eros, nec tempus augue mi vitae turpis. curabitur eget nisi neque.

morbi sagittis tempus leo et fringilla. nulla sed nunc velit. nam dapibus, lectus non aliquam luctus, est lorem auctor erat, quis ultrices neque ante ac nisl. sed ultricies tellus et tortor consectetur posuere. class aptent taciti sociosqu ad litora torquent per conubia nostra, per inceptos himenaeos. sed a sapien eros. etiam i'd rather dance with you then talk with you. mauris eget eros non nisi bibendum auctor. morbi iaculis, magna in vestibulum lacinia, ante orci sodales mi, vel iaculis enim tortor sit amet augue. aliquam erat volutpat. curabitur quis leo mi, ac malesuada elit. sed quis sodales enim. integer molestie metus libero, quis adipiscing orci. vivamus vulputate felis eget nunc sodales eget scelerisque ligula aliquet. lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. donec vitae ipsum nec nisl consectetur pharetra. nullam imperdiet enim eu nunc luctus dignissim. quisque commodo augue dolor. praesent tempus nulla non justo porttitor ornare.

sed varius nulla vel ligula tristique vulputate. donec bibendum ultrices magna at interdum. nunc mi tellus, auctor quis auctor sed, commodo vitae enim. quisque convallis nibh at sapien bibendum sed lobortis eros faucibus. in suscipit euismod hendrerit. integer imperdiet, dui quis semper semper, tellus turpis lacinia ligula, eu ultrices ante turpis vitae quam. in a nunc lacus. curabitur pellentesque scelerisque dictum. mauris a eros lectus. nam accumsan ipsum turpis, ultricies consectetur tellus. aenean nisl velit, iaculis a semper in, rhoncus in lorem. in hac habitasse platea dictumst. nam tempus lobortis mauris in pulvinar. nam odio sapien, pretium ac suscipit bibendum, sollicitudin id elit. mauris commodo sagittis nulla vitae facilisis. proin porta iaculis leo ut ultrices. sed pharetra nisi libero. donec rhoncus velit vitae orci sollicitudin accumsan ultrices augue porttitor.

pellentesque sed massa ipsum. duis quam sem, posuere non euismod quis, lacinia sit amet ipsum. suspendisse dignissim nisi ac nisi dignissim vestibulum. duis auctor mi sit amet risus ullamcorper quis venenatis erat elementum. mauris et velit nec leo pulvinar lobortis sit amet at nulla. quisque in consequat eros. aenean varius elit eu orci luctus sollicitudin. nam congue tortor non libero placerat in lacinia justo mattis. proin euismod volutpat auctor. curabitur id tellus a est feugiat pretium. mauris ut sapien urna, volutpat mollis ipsum. praesent sed nisi lacus. aliquam elementum ultricies lectus at commodo. pellentesque vestibulum aliquet elementum. aliquam bibendum quam vitae ante egestas at fermentum metus eleifend. nulla porta sem sit amet orci mollis cursus.

matter of time

one dead after lorry crashes into pair of cycling buddies

seriously, looking at the traffic conditions and driver behaviour after hitting the roads again today, i can only wonder when will it be my turn.

debate debacle

click to enlarge

i was just thinking, that in the new year, that all of us atheists might need some help or reference to help us along with engaging our friends of a different (and blind) faith.

voilà: the dummies' guide to debating a christian. i hope it'll help you in your "discussions" this year. =)

010111

pull your ear!