Being B

Working in IT allows me to come into contact with interesting users, but I do feel that one of my co-worker is probably a more interesting character.

To protect his identity, I shall refer to him as B.

He is 1 of those that works in shift, which means that he sometimes come to office earlier than us and of course, he leaves the office earlier as well. That, to me is just part of work requirement and I am fine with it, during 1 of my previous job, that was also in the job description and that I know what that entails. Working shift is fun and I do enjoy it as it affords me the time after shifts to sometime go out and actually visit the bank, catch an early movie and generally bum at home when nobody is around.

What I really have problem with, is his attitude. Which boils down to :

1). B is always right
2). When you proved B wrong, B will come down hard on you
3). B is always there to tell the boss who did wrong

Which incidentally, is fine by me if he keeps to himself and do his daily share of work. Unfortunately, he hardly keeps to himself and he loves to whine.....

Whining isn't so bad if you are cute or do it cutely, imagine a hairy 900pound walrus whinning..... You get the picture.

Being in IT, we more or less expects that he can take care of his own computer, after all, someone managing huge IBM and HP super computer should be able to take care of their puny notebook? No!!! In my 10 yrs of IT support, I had never come across somebody asking me for a screw driver, just so that he can remove the battery from his notebook to find out if the battery is due for a recall....And when I showed him that all it take was 2 opposable thumb, What I got was," I am not trained in Hardware. Don't expect me to know that." After a fully illustrated email showing how the battery was to be removed.

Being the guy in charge of security, I constantly come to know of security bleaches and that some of the guys getting to the top of the shit list. But for most of them, they are there because they are the 1 doing the checks on the machines. Now, it is one thing to have a software key generation program in one's computer. It is another to have it in the company's laptop and definitely takes the cake when confronted to actually says that the offending piece of code was there in the computer for quite some time and that only recently did the scanner picks it up...... I am just wondering how the policeman will feel when haul up a drunk driver only to have the drunk retorting that he had been drink driving for a few years, did a few hit and run and what took the police so long to catch him....... I would probably lock him up, throw away the keys with a whole bunch of hungry hyenas.....

Speaking about drunk.... I have no qualms with people drinking.... Heck, drinking during lunch time might not be so bad if you watch the limit and remains decently sober when its time to get back to office or just ask for the day off if you felt too tipsy.... But what really take the cake would be to get another colleague on the team to go out, drink, come back to the office after 4 hours, still roaring drunk, telling another colleague that he is in trouble with the married women in the office and should turn to him for help..... Then waltzing off when the shift is up......While his just as inebriated team mates stumbled and nearly fell down a flight of stairs.
That really got our dear B into the shits....from what I heard, this isn't the first time with the last incident happened only recently.... And I do hope that he really wakes up...But the whole thing just made me feel, and it sums up nicely with this picture..

Lost In Singapore

I am worried, I am very worried....
It was once said that we live in one of the safest if not the safest city in the world.. Seems like the bubble of security was quickly pricked by reality and probably with help from a healthy dose of complacency.

The top guy of JI in custody had escaped, and according to our dear Minister Wong, he escaped on the pretext that he needs to go the toilet during family visitation. Wow, from what I heard, it is now almost 24 hours and he is still at large.... What makes it even more ridiculous is the fact that, he got out... Limping.... You hear right, we are not talking about David blane, David copperfield or X-men, a cripple got out of what was suppose a high security installation.

Makes one wonder how secure we really are.

I used to be able to go about proudly to say to foreigners that they can walk without fear even at night alone... Now, even I am a bit worried about who they let out.

Is this really an isolated incident? I have no idea and I certainly hope so...

It took them 4 hours to disclose this to the public when they realised that someone this high profile is lost and they are nowhere near catching him...

How many more had fallen through the crack..... we have no idea, from what I know, this is far from being the only case of people under custody managed to get out...

With our first class public transport and road that can brings you from one part of Singapore to another in 20 min, I will not be surprised if he probably had dinner yesterday at Lau Par Sat, Checked into Shangri La, visited Sentosa, had lunch in Geylang and now having High Tea and having a good laugh in Good Wood Park.......

While people like me have nothing more than a pair of eyes and hope that our boys in blue and green can wisen up anc catch hold of him soon..... If he has not skipped the country

Square 2 or Scam 2

I must admit, I am no exception like all Singaporean to the love of shopping and being attracted to a good deal.

When something like this came up,


I know that I just could not miss it.

A few reason that I feel that it is a good deal:

1). My Wife works in the next building
2). I need to meet up with her on every Friday for her ante-natal class
3). There are a few items worth more than $50 that we need to purchase and some shops there sells it.

Given all these, we went ahead and spend our money there.... not because it is most convenient and cheap, but we felt that prize redemption beats ang bao wrapper and lucky draw at any given day.

Well, what turned out as a good deal was nothing more than a gimmick.

Yes, I got what I wanted, a steamboat for the reunion dinner but that is after 2 trips and a very long queue from 8am.

If you think that I was pissed, you should see these people


And if you asked me, I believe that they have good reason to, as when I was there on Saturday, at about 12, which was 1 hour after the opening of the redemption, this was how it was


On a closer look




And 1 short video of some very angry shoppers


And all these you can find here

And what I felt was bad management pure and simple was,

1). They started off being really slack about the terms and condition and started to make up more rules as they go along.

2). Was it that there were cases during the promo that some of the tenants actually went to exchange for the higher priced items resulting in those high value items being completely replenished just 1 to week into the event.

3). The whole idea of having a quota each day for redemption is in a way, rather silly as it will require people to keep going back to not shop, but just to queue to redeem the items. What they could have simply done was to :
a). Have a while stock last and close the event when the items run out and reduce all these grief
b). Stock up more of the items just so that shopper that spent money actually can redeem their items.

4). When the higher valued items ran out, asking the shoppers to redeem the lower value items, Now, the problem with that is, the value does not really equates, and given the limitation of 3 items per person, it means that the shopper will have to walk away with 3 packet of Yeos Drink instead of the Yu Yan Seng Hamper, does that measured up? Hardly. And I can assured you that nobody will be grateful for this swap.

Some people actually made a deliberate choice to shop there based on the fact that the promotion makes it worth their while to go there and bringing their money with them.
Fool me once, shame on me; fool me twice, shame on you.....
Those disgruntled shoppers may very well not take the bait come the next round. Maybe they do not care as there are one new sucker born everyday.

From the response on STOMP, I am not the only one and there are some more nuance and incidents of a poorly managed event

muahahahaha said on 04 Feb, 2008

wow, i was told that one of the reason that the abalone ran out so fast is that some of the staff working there actually kept reciepts that customers left behind and through 'relations' get teh abalone... maybe novena should actually check on it. not sure how true it is...

muahahahaha said on 04 Feb, 2008

yap! same scenario as Sash, my aunt was told "the next day", which is today, my aunt made a trip back again and was told, everything is fully redeem! end up only have few packet of water~ cheat!

Sash said on 04 Feb, 2008

However, I think she cld b friendlier & more consistent cos I think she only checks in d morning when ppl r q-ing. According to a fellow customer in q with me, Cynthia "abused" her authority on 28 Jan morning when she cut q and redeemed for her friend.

Sash said on 04 Feb, 2008

I heard a lady named Cynthia who checked ppl's receipts b4 they can redeem explained they had lost a stamp used to chop the stamps for every $50. That's y d need to check and also to prevent Square 2 tenants fr abusing the promotion.

Sash said on 04 Feb, 2008

It's ridiculous to expect customers to come back the next day to q to redeem gifts. I'd to go twice cos the abalone ran out. There was this aunty who q-ed at least 3 days in a row like 9am. Each time she redeemed at least 2 big items.

Sash said on 04 Feb, 2008

There are lots of terms and conditions. It was the same for Xmas at Square 2. Many customers felt con as the retail sales ppl made them buy stuff saying they can redeem gifts, which were fully redeemed already.

End of the day, Caveat Emptor. Even if it sounds like a good and reasonable deal, you may have to run through loops to get it or get royaly shafted.

But the real hero, are those customer service staff there. From what I understood, they were there day in and day out, putting up with shoppers which could be either angry, unreasonable or just down right abusive. This together with the unforgiving terms and condition, and from what I understand from 1, a management that were never present but reprimand them at the end of the day, they are the one that deserves our salute.

As for the Managements of Square2, shame on you.

Public housing???

Got this off from a thread in Hardware Zone EDMW

Feel that it make sense..

Posting it here in case the mod there decides to lock that thread

Topic: ROOT CAUSE of "sky-high" HDB flat prices


Note for readers:
1 Reproduced below is the full text of my letter to TODAY Voices section --- which was rejected(read: censored) for publication for the obvious reason that I had exposed "The HDB Flat Pricing Scam" (which not many S'poreans are aware of).

2 Key Issue --- The HDB (under $2m Minister Mah Bow Tan) had used the clever term "market subsidy" to confuse buyers of HDB new flats into thinking their flats are "heavily subsidized" (Mah's own words) by the PAP Govt.
In fact, there is no "cash subsidy" at all and the HDB is actually raking in a cleverly-disguised profit !

3 For greater public awareness, please help to forward to as many people as possible and ask them to do likewise (for "the multiplier effect").
More informed voters can then vote appropriately at the next 2011 General Elections to send a strong message to the PAP Govt to provide truly-affordable housing for the people.



Original Text of my email letter to TODAY newspaper:

In his letter "Resale flats out of reach" (TODAY Jan 17), Mr Anthony Tan highlighted the problems faced by many first-time HDB flat-buyers. Allow me to trace the root cause behind their dilemma.

As a 60-year old educated Senior Citizen, I surf the Internet regularly to gauge the true concerns of young Singaporeans, who are mostly hesitant to speak up openly.

I empathise with their growing despair on home ownership. Many are resigned that private flats are now way beyond their reach. All they simply want is a basic no-frills inexpensive flat --- with enough money left to decorate it to their own personal taste into a cosy home!

However, even with HDB flats, they are caught between the devil and the deep blue sea --- either wait 4 years for "expensive" new flats or else pay "sky-high" prices for resale flats. They are rightly concerned that a $1 million HDB resale flat may not be that far-fetched.

One worry is that, despite such high prices, few buyers will feel the pinch immediately because up to 90% of the cost can be financed by long-term home loans stretching up to 30 years.

So many seldom give a second thought that if they borrow, say, $300,000 under a 30-year loan, they could ultimately cough up nearly $600,000 in total capital and interest repayments.

Another worry: If a young couple have to sink so much of their hard-earned income and CPF savings into their brick-and-cement flat, how much monies will there be left to raise a family and sent their children to university --- not to mention providing for their own healthcare and retirement needs in their golden years?


In the 1970s, the starting graduate salary was $1000 per month. Then, in the HDB Marine Parade Estate, prices of new 5-rm, 4-rm and 3-rm flats were $35,000, $20,000 and $17,000 respectively. In 1990, average price of new 5-rm flats was $70,000. Such prices then reflected a "cost-based pricing approach".

Now, starting graduate salary is 3 times higher at $3,000 per month but prices of similar HDB new flats have gone up by 10 times to 30 times. The massive price hikes were largely the result of the HDB switching over to a "market-based pricing approach".


Since 2002, many have queried the HDB in newspaper forums on how its new flats are actually priced. Last December, the HDB finally confirmed that "the prices of new HDB flats are based on the market prices of resale HDB flats, and not their costs of construction."

This is a simple-to-understand example using data from 2000, when 5-rm new flats were priced upwards of $200,000.

However, from actual tendered contracts of HDB Building Contractors, the Construction Cost per flat was about $50,000. Adding on an estimated $70,000 for Land Cost & Other Related Costs, the Total Breakeven Cost per flat was about $120,000 --- which HDB should set as the selling price, since it is supposed to be a not-for-profit, low-cost public housing developer.

But, under the market-based pricing approach, HDB will first look at the then prevailing market price of, say $260,000 of a 5-rm resale flat. It will then pick a lower figure of, say $200,000 as the selling price for the 5-rm new flat --- never mind if its actual Total Breakeven Cost was only $120,000.

The HDB can then say the new flat buyer is getting a "market subsidy" of $60,000 arising from the difference between the resale flat price and new flat price. Notice, under such an approach, there is absolutely no "cash subsidy" granted at all to the new flat buyer. Instead, the HDB is actually collecting a profit of $80,000 per flat (representing a 67% profit margin). In contrast, private developers normally earn around 20% profit margin for assuming business risks.

Most importantly, this HDB market-based pricing approach had resulted in new flat prices and resale flat prices chasing each other in an upward spiral ---- that is financially disadvantageous to buyers of both new and resale flats.

Should HDB deem the above example as simplistic or misleading, the onus lies with it to rebut and substantiate with its own detailed data.

HDB should also provide its public response to this remaining burning question --- Why is the HDB not really helping first-time buyers of new flats by passing on to them the substantial cost-savings from economies-of-scale in massive HDB developments through pricing new flats on a "cost-based break-even" approach?


We have also since moved from small "pigeon-holes" to tiny "bee-hives" --- extremely costly beehives, to be precise! HDB new flats are now built smaller, closer and at higher price.

The HDB itself had stopped building the larger 1200 sq ft 5-room and 1400 sq ft Executive flats. Current prices of 1000 sq ft 4-rm HDB new flats range from $200,000 (in Senkang) to $400,000 (in Telok Blangah) and up to the whopping $590,000 (in Boon Keng, under Design, Build and Sell Scheme by private developer).


Our politicians constantly exhort Singaporeans to treat Singapore as "home" literally and figuratively. To help solve our Procreation Problem, young couples are also reminded not to delay marriage and have three or more children. Pray tell us how do you squeeze two parents, three children, one maid and possibly one or two elderly in-laws in a 1000 sq ft "bee-hive"?

When young, educated and mobile Singaporeans are short-changed on such basic "quality of life" aspirations as a truly-affordable and decent-size home for their loved ones, is it any wonder many are contemplating to be "quitters" rather than "stayers"?

Misadventure of 2 bears Part 2 (M-18)

Misadventure of 2 bears Part 1 (M-18)

Mean Testing or just plain mean

We were told that Mean Testing will be done for public hospital. While you can read about all those good things and great measures that will be in place to prevent abuse and make those B2 and C wards better while not being abused.... I wonder, will it just plain and simple raise the cost of healthcare once again or that more people will be write off from using those "subsidised" ward....

Now, while mean testing is all good and dandy.... I feel that it is plain mean. What it does is that, it writes off people, most likely people who are better to do... to use those wards. Now, isn't those people who paid tax which are then being translated into the healthcare budget? Or is it that the healthcare today is now an industry which out of the kindness of its heart, subsidise those wards from the money made from other sources?

If I remember correctly, with exception of the New Changi Hospital, all the hospital were built with public money that are derived from tax and other government income (not surplus) in that case, while it may be morally objectionable for the well-to-do to crowd out the lesser in public health care, taking public money to see if they deserve public subsidies.... seems so wrong.

I will have no qualms if this is done to prevent the casual visitor to our fair shore to the highly "subsidised" place. But think again, for those who are well-heeled, would they actually subject themselves to a less than better treatment when they are ill? even our MM managed to convert a SIA jet to bring his wife back to Singapore for treatment..... would anyone go for the lower standard public healthcare?
I think not.

So, unless it means that the B2 and C ward are actually cheaper after mean testing and are more readily available, the whole exercise would just be another administrative barrier out to take up more public resources and waste our time and money.....

Another year, another start

DK used to tell me that I will need cleaning services pest control due to amount of cobwebs and spiderwebs on this blog. I am even more pleasantly surprised that there are still people that comes to this blog, intentionally or unintentionally. For that, I thank those who visited.

For a good part of 07, it was business as usual with all the plans being made and scuttled. There is 1 however, that allowed no turning back, and as far as I can concern, will change my life forever.....the arrival of a baby girl in 08.

While the world moves on, events taking place.... I couldn't help but felt disjointed with the rest of the world as I started to make plan, thinking of names, getting stuffs , attending classes and making sure that the house is ready....

I couldn't help but to have worries...if the kid will turn out all right, will we be good parent to the kid......

In short, this is now a 9 month project which will lead on to a 20+ yr development cycle....I just could not but felt ill-prepared for the change in life....

Yet, like a lot of other milestones in life, this you do not get to choose.....
While we deliver the baby into the world, we do not get to choose how they are, besides their name and how we treat and educate them... the rest, will be hard work and hopefully with some luck... the kid will turn out all right.

Learning the road

It has been one of my new year resolution that I will work towards my driving licence.
I am glad to say that I make that step today and started on my driving lesson.

Say what you may, but I have decided to take the less popular path and sign up with a private instructor.

After my not so fantastic dinner at Delifrance Lot-1, I went down to Bukit Gombak MRT to meet the instructor, which seems to be a rather experienced instructor with many years of experience written on his face.

I guess its a bit unbelievable for someone in their early 30s to take on to the steering wheel for the very first time and I keep getting this question for the first 15 min of the session... but... truth being so, what can I say.

I was quite taken back when the car keep stalling when I get behin the wheel, but as the session went on, I start to get smoother and stop throwing everyone in the car all over.....

Managed to at least get on to the second gear without a dent on any car and absolutely zero road kill.

The scary part is that, my instructor will like me to be on the road at the next session....So, if you happen to be anywhere near Bukit Gombak, Bukit Batok, Choa Chu Kang area... stay clear of the road and if you see me behind the wheel of the L plate... please hor... Siam as far as you can.

Letter to Optimus

Its not easy being the leader of Autobot and protecting the universe from evil....

The proof below from http://mcsweeneys.net/2007/7/9weaver.html

A LETTER TO OPTIMUS PRIME
FROM HIS GEICO AUTO INSURANCE
AGENT.
BY JOHN FRANK WEAVER

- - - -

Dear Mr. Prime,

We have received your accident-claim reports for the month of June—they total 27. I regret to inform you that GEICO will not be able to reimburse you for any of those repairs. I feel that I have sent the same letter to you once a month for the last six months, and I am now sending it again.

Since becoming a GEICO customer in January of this year, you have reported 131 accidents, requesting reimbursement for repairs necessitated by each one. You have claimed not to be responsible in any of them, usually listing the cause of the accident as either "Sneak attack by Decepticons" or "Unavoidable damage caused by protecting freedom for all sentient beings."

The only repairs for which you were reimbursed were the replacement of a cracked fender and a headlight, required after a Mr. I. Ron Hide backed his van into your truck; these cost $1,286.63. Our own investigation concluded that you were not at fault and that Mr. Hide had been drinking prior to the accident. Though police were unable to test his blood-alcohol level—Mr. Hide claimed that it would be impossible for police to examine his blood-alcohol content with a Breathalyzer, because he "doesn't breathe"—under Washington-state law, refusal to take a Breathalyzer test is equivalent to returning a result above the legal level.

But, I repeat, those were the only repairs for which you have been reimbursed, and it was a very minor accident in comparison to your other claims. I mention a few to illustrate the larger trend:

* $379,431.34 requested reimbursement for repairs to your truck cabin. You claimed the damage was caused by attacking fighter jets.

* $665,789.11 requested reimbursement for repairs to your trailer. You claimed the damage was caused by a giant mechanical scorpion, which I can only assume is some amusement-park ride, although I question the wisdom of bringing your mobile home so close to such dangerous equipment.

* $6,564,239.44 requested reimbursement for repairs to a truck part called the "Autobot Matrix of Leadership." You stated this occurred in "an ultimate confrontation between good and evil," with a Ms. Meg Atron and a Mr. U. Nicron causing the damage in question. Mr. Prime, I have checked every known car- and truck-part catalog published in the United States and have found nothing even resembling that part, never mind any part so expensive. Whatever disagreements you had with Ms. Atron and Mr. Nicron, I suggest that next time you either settle things peaceably or leave your Autobot Matrix of Leadership at home so it doesn't break. GEICO does not cover Autobot Matrix of Leaderships.

And the list goes on. Mr. Prime, I am going to remind you again: Your policy with GEICO only reimburses you for accidents that occur while you are engaged in the reasonable use of your truck and trailer. As I told you when you originally purchased the policy, GEICO does not offer Megatron coverage, Starscream coverage, Soundwave coverage, Decepticon coverage, or Energon-blast coverage. Those are just not the types of damages we would expect from reasonable use.

To sum up, GEICO has been unable to reimburse you for any repairs, but due to the high number of accidents you have been a party to this month, combined with the many accidents you have had in the preceding five months, your premium has increased to $235,567.50 per month. While that may seem like a lot, I remind you that it is a savings of $137 over Progressive and $98 over State Farm. Please have your check into our main office by the end of July.

Regards,

Simon Furman
GEICO Agent

So, you can see that its expensive to protect the free world....
go watch the show and buy Prime merchandise now

真正愛你的男人

another 1

真正愛你的男人，是...

●抱起來溫暖，囉唆很煩，在身邊討厭，看不見又很懷念的人。
●吃剩的麵不要浪費，他會接過去幫妳吃乾淨的人。
●去大賣場買東西，總是比妳多提兩大袋，還是會空出手牽妳的人。
●逛街，總是從頭到尾『良性勸導』妳不要亂花錢的人。
●自己的內衣褲破了都懶的買，還在陪妳試穿衣服的人。
●月經來，抓到妳偷吃剉冰，會很生氣罵妳的人。
●當你月經來，會走進7-11為妳買衛生棉的人。
●不顧自己有多想睡覺，也是會陪妳聊天聊到天亮的人。
●妳生病，卻比妳還要辛苦的人。
●一邊罵妳肥嫌妳胖，卻還是去買宵夜給妳吃的人。
●吵完架做錯事，還會厚臉皮跑來牽妳手的人。
●日子久了，就會忘記情人節、聖誕節存在的人。
●為了看現場轉播的NBA總冠軍賽，敢把可愛的妳推到旁邊涼的人。
●很少送妳花，卻常愛送妳日常生活用品的人。
●沒事一定陪妳，有事還是陪妳，讓妳懷疑他是不是沒有朋友的人。
●房間東西亂七八糟，被妳罵了才會去整理的人。
●最喜歡看妳開心的大笑，然後也對著妳傻笑的人。
●看見妳笑容，他會很得意的人。
●漏接妳電話，就會打爆妳手機的人。
●妳晚歸，會徹夜爲妳等門的人。
●剛吵架一路不說話，也還是會接送妳回家的人。
●聽到妳哭，還是會不辭千里的飛奔到妳身邊的人。
●偷偷的為妳做了很多事，卻從來不和你邀功的人。
●已經認為自己的手臂與肚子是枕頭的人。
●敢會和妳搶遙控器，最後卻只能陪妳看韓劇的人。
●他不在，妳就會心煩意亂心不在焉，開始很想念他的人。

轉貼:給女孩們看一下

Something very touching

其實很多女孩子都不知道，男孩子在從他們發火後自己轉過身卻在不斷自責。

其實很多女孩子都不知道，男孩子從來不會真正去生她們的氣，因為他是真的喜歡妳在乎妳。

其實很多女孩子都不知道，男孩子只會對自己喜歡的女生百般呵護，也只會對自己喜歡的人耍性子。

妳要知道，假若他不喜歡妳，他根本不會來在乎妳關心妳，怕妳做錯事情。

妳要知道，假若他不喜歡妳，他根本不會對妳發火不會要妳撒嬌要妳哄他，在別人面前他都是紳士。

妳要知道，假若他不喜歡妳，妳根本就沒有本事讓他自責，讓他即使生氣也不會超過１天。

而這一切都只是因為他喜歡妳，而這一切都因為妳還不夠在意他不夠懂他。

於是，你們時常爭吵，妳認為他脾氣不好，妳認為他不夠遷就妳。

於是，你們總是冷戰，妳以為他不喜歡妳，妳以為他不在乎妳。

於是，你們總是莫名其妙的彼此錯過，也許擦身而過，本身就是一種悲傷著的無奈與幸福。

要知道，淒美依然是美的一種，並且美的絢麗悲涼而滄桑，那是更加的美。

因為他喜歡妳，所以妳偶爾他你發火，時常對他撒嬌。

因為他喜歡妳，所以他才會生妳的氣；而又因為喜歡妳，他才不會去生氣很久。

妳可知道，每個男孩子的面子都是玻璃做的，晶瑩剔透，但是很容易就碰傷摔碎。

妳可知道，每個男孩子都是有設防的，當他選擇讓妳闖進他的心，妳走的時候卻只留下傷害。

妳從來都不知道，這個世界上根本沒有可以讓他哭的人，因為真正值得為他哭的那個人，妳根本捨不得讓他哭。

妳會很矜持，妳會很驕傲，他會很冷淡，他總是嘴裏說著妳很煩，心裏卻一直喜歡妳煩。

請妳張開妳的耳朵，也請妳打開他的心，去聽他心裏真正的呼喚，而不是他嘴裏的口是心非。

他會看著妳轉身，然後他跟著妳轉身，當側身而過的時候，他看不見妳的淚，滂沱在臉上心裏。

如果妳喜歡他，請妳多陪他；如果妳喜歡他，請妳多讓他自由；如果妳喜歡他，請妳多了解他。

如果妳喜歡他，請妳去聽聽他內心的聲音，那是無言的吶喊——請給他一個吻。

在愛情裏，總是彼此傷害，彷佛這樣才能證明自己愛得激烈愛到轟轟烈烈。

可是，愛情裏沒有孰對孰錯；愛情裏更加沒有妳比我多我比妳少。

妳愛他，他愛妳，如此就已經足夠。不要試圖讓彼此的傷害，讓彼此更加脆弱悲傷。

你們彼此相愛，你們需要的是溫暖是幸福是甜蜜是快樂，不是傷害。

不要用沈默宣戰，不要互不相讓，更不要什麼話都不講就冷漠離去。

要知道，妳離去的時候，妳的眼睛起了霧，其實他的眼角正泛著淚光。

越是安靜戰火就越傳，這是冷戰也是彼此的傷害——無論是怎麼的復合，那些傷口曾經存在，抹不去。

請跟他一個擁抱，用妳的擁抱去化解他心裏的無奈。

妳喜歡他，他絕對不會拒絕妳的擁抱，他只會害怕妳的冷漠轉身無聲安靜。

請記住，相愛的人不要輕易宣戰，因為冷戰帶來的傷害，超出妳的預計。

也請記住，只要妳喜歡他，沒有什麼是妳接受不了的，只要妳喜歡他，就喜歡他的一切一切。

那麼他所有的小性子所有的壞脾氣所有的臭毛病，在妳眼裏都是撒嬌。

也請記住，他喜歡妳，他需要的不是妳真的轉身，他嘴裏說著的也不是他的真心話。

他只是想妳給他多一點自由，想妳多了解他一點，哪怕，沒有道歉。


他要的　只是自由　只是妳的相信與支持

~*～★～*～☆～*～★～◎～☆～*～★～*～☆～*
以上轉貼 裡面也有我的心情

Fly your way

While I am not the most frequent flyer out there.
There seems to be a recent trend that I am caught in whenever I am flying.

No, no air rage in my warpath, and nary been a hiccup due to incident of nature either technical or terrorism.

It just seems that I have to play usher to folks on my flight... or rather, those that decided that my seat was theirs.

The first incident happened on my trip back from France some time last year.

I had taken my seat and started to read.

A rather irate French men was looking down at me as if I had cooked and eaten his poodle in his presence.

He started in his thickly accented English,"Why are you in my seat!"

Of which, I just take out my boarding pass which doubled as my bookmark, showed him my seat number and pointed to the indicator on top of the seat.

That shut him up for the time being.
After 5 min, he began to mutter something about the fact that he normally get aisle seats. Bastard mode now in overtime, I just turned around and tell him that I know that I am right as I checked my seat.

He got the attention of a passing stewardess and got a seat somewhere else.

The other 2 incidents were during my Bali trip.

The first was when I board the flight in Singapore only to find that a Woman was seated squarely in my seat, with her husband in the seat across the aisle. I just look at her and she quickly took out here boarding pass and claims that the seat (52F ) was hers. Now, I hold the same ticket and realised that it is either a printing error or someone really f***ed it up in the ticket allocation.

I did a quick double take only to see that, she is supposed to be sitting in 62.....
And off she went. My only regret is that I should have quietly moved to 62 as the seat at 52 was faulty and will lean back everytime I rest my back on it.

.............

On my trip back, I have to doubled as another couple's English teacher and teach them the basics of ABCs and also tell them that FGH is on the other side of the aisle.

I just hope that this streak of correcting everyone's seating allocation will not continue or I will ask for a discount everytime I fly.

Lifting Experience

Living in a HDB flat is really an experience.
But nothing beats taking the lift.

You see, it used to be that the lift only opens up to 3 or 4 floors of a block. If you are the lucky bastard that stays on those floor where the lift lands, it means that you will have no woes of lugging heavy stuff and that your movers will thank you. If not, good luck.

However, the have the fortune of staying in a newer block of flats which lands at every floor, even the basements.

It was one of those morning that I got in on the lift, what wasn't common was that there was this woman that was standing right next to the door.

She didn't as much move a bit to allow me entry.

Whats worse, she started to stare at me. (Or Glaring was far more appropriate)

And not before long, she started to confront me and tell me that I should have waited till she get out of the lift before rushing in.

Now, even after a year at the new place, I have not met or talk to everyone on that same floor. But I am pretty sure that she isn't staying on the same floor as I am. Given the fact that the lift was on its way down. I can only guess that she thought that I was at the first floor.

Which then I had to just ask her, " Were you getting out at the third floor?"

Only then did she realised that the lift was at third floor on its way down to the first.

It is then it dawn on her that
1). She has been absolutely surly in her attitude
2). She would have been spared all these if she had just opened her eyes.

This is one of those cases of jumping to conclusion without fact or plain observation.

1 long and tiring weekend - Friday Part 2

Just when we were leaving Geek Terminal, I got a call from my mother.
She asked me the same question that she has been asking throughout the week as to where I was going.

However, this time, she asked if it was possible for me to cancel my trip.......

Only managed to gather from her that she saw on the news, a huge wave swept the coast of Indonesia and....

And you know it, Bali was affected.....

So much for a quiet trip to a safe and beautiful resort.
Anyway, it was getting late and that we were heading home to get ready for another long day for Saturday.

1 Long and tiring weekend - Friday

It has been another 1 of those long hiatus from this blog. Yes, I am not the most consistent of blogger, but I do come back...

I am gearing up for another short trip in Bali, and no, its work, not play that will bring me to that beautiful, if now treacherous spot.

I spent Friday night with the gang from Want To Trade in that new place that Shawn recommended, and I dare say, a great place it is.

In case you are wondering where the hell it is, it is

The Geek Terminal

A place where once and future geek should hang out and chill.
And here is a photo of all the geeks there



The company was fun as always as we all got cracked up with the antics and jokes of Paddy and Izel. When they are not too busy having domestic dispute....in their usual lovey dovey ways.

Iris and DK was there as well. Not to mention Shawn and Hong Jia.

East Coast Life and her husband joined us shortly. All in all, it was great fun

What make this place so great is simply the concept behind it.
It is a place where you get free wireless broadband and the ability to connect up all your geeky gadgets.

Besides the concept of connect, I dare say that the coffee there is fantastic and to food is definitely great.

I was too busy wolfing it down that there really isn't anything to share with any of you.

But you can have a look at the desert and drool







So, what are you waiting for, go on down, let your inner geek out and be connected...

There goes the holiday

While we were bombarded with all the in your face messages about security and the consequences in lieu of it ever since 9/11. However, we should wonder that if we actually gave people a blank cheque to pump up their own ego or puffed up their own importance in what could be a mundane and boring routine at the expense of others.

And all you take is to hear someone say bomb, make them repeat it and you can turn their life hell and screw them to no end.

The following is a real event in Singapore and its even reported in the news

Subject: A FAMILY HOLIDAY RUINED BY ILLOGICAL SECURITY OFFICERS

Dear Mr. Foo,

My name is Sandra. It is with great
disappointment and distress that I am filing a complaint to you with
regards to my situation.

My family (including myself, my husband, my daughter, and my son) planned a
Darwin holiday for the March school vacation period and was supposed to
depart on 09 March. Unfortunately, we were put in a situation by the
security officers at the departure terminal, that was way beyond our
control and we were not able to make our trip. The following is an account
of what had happened : -

I entered the Immigration gantry at about 7.15pm with my daughter to have our passport scanned and our hand carry luggage checked whilst my husband stayed behind with my son at the ticketing counter to sort out my son's visa. After
having mine and my daughter's passport scanned, we proceed to the security
gantry to have our hand luggage and our bodies scanned. My daughter passed the
security gantry first, whilst I followed right behind her. A lady officer
asked me to remove my boots for scanning, and I did as told immediately and
put my boots inside the basket provided, for it to be scanned together with
my hand luggage. I then proceed to the metal detector of which I cleared
without the gantry beeping or detecting any metal objects. I was then asked
to collect my luggage and my boots. In the mean time, my daughter was throwing
away a sweet wrapper and retuning to me and saw me putting on my boots.
my daughter then asked casually "Mummy, why do you have to remove your shoes?"
Whilst putting on my boots, I replied her and said that "they (the security
officers) are afraid that we might keep bombs in our shoes (which is why I
need to take it off to have it scanned)"

Immediately, a security officer standing at the conveyor belt (Stephen S
Naidira) who was standing in front of me said with a very rude tone "repeat
what you just said". I clarified with him what he meant - is it for me to
repeat what I had told my daughter? He said loudly again, to repeat what I
had just said. So I did exactly what he told me. I said to him that "my
daughter asked me why I need to take off my shoes, and I told her that you
guys (the security officers) are afraid that we will keep bombs in our
shoes." He immediately asked me to stand aside and said that he had to
report it to his superior that I said the word "bomb" twice. Then an Indian
lady (Sivamalar) at the customs started hurling at me and my daughter and
said that I said the word "bomb" twice and it is against the law and I can
be sent to jail and they are calling the police. She (Sivamalar) was so
loud and rude and she shoved us to the side, and refused to listen to my
explanation. In fact, she got so aggressive that another officer Ricky Lim
(I guess it's her supervisor) had to come forward to stop her from further
attacking me and my daughter verbally, and specifically asked Sivamalar to
"shut up". I told Ricky Lim that I would like to know the names of his
staff because their attitude and rudeness were simply beyond any acceptable
level. Immediately Sivamalar got so angry and aggressive that she started
charging at Ricky Lim and hurled "What?! What?! What?! She (she meant me)
said the word "Bomb" twice, so what is wrong with arresting her (which is
me) and we were told that if we heard the word twice, we will arrest!!" At
that time, Stephen S Naidira came to me again to intimidate me further by
asking me to repeat what I said earlier to my daughter again. I refused to
repeat again then because I believe he was deliberately asking me to repeat
so that he can count the number of times that I mentioned the word "bomb".
I also believe that that the officers were deliberately provoking me by
being rude and intimidating, in the hope that I will retaliate in kind,
thereby making their unreasonable actions justifiable.

Despite my anger and the fact that my daughter was scared to tears by the
situation, I knew I had to keep my cool. I sat aside with my daughter
taking down names of the personnel involved on my mobile phone. I was told
to wait for another officer of a higher rank to decide on the matter, and I
was still hoping whoever the higher ranked officer that was coming will
have the logical thinking to acknowledge that what I had said to my
daughter was a simple, harmless private conversation taken completely
out-of-context.

At about 7.30pm, the Sergeant-in-charge, Amran Buang came. After I
explained the full context of the incident to him, he refused to make a
decision and decided to escalate it further to the Auxilary Police and
State Police. He said that the word "bomb" is very sensitive and I should
not have mentioned it twice. I explained to him that I did not know saying
the word "bomb" is against the law, and I further explained that I did not
say the word "bomb" in a threatening context to the officer, the word
"bomb" was taken completely out of context as part of an answer to my
daughter's question. Despite my explanation, he said he cannot make the
decision and my case has to be escalated to higher authorities.

Meanwhile, at about 7.40pm, my son's visa cleared and my husband and my son
came in through the customs. After knowing what had happened, my husband
tried to talk to Sergeant Amran Buang, further explaining to him that we
are just a family going on holiday and what I have said to my daughter had
been taken out of context. Again, no one was bothered to listen. And again,
we were told to wait for another officer with an even higher ranking. With
time ticking away and at 7.55pm with no sign of the higher authorities
appearing, we knew then our hope of boarding our flight had diminished.

Whilst waiting, Stephen S Naidira (the security officer) gathered with a
few security officers at the side, including Sivamalar to discuss how they
should present their statement to the police when they arrive later to make
sure that they are adequately covered, and that they are just following the
rule and doing what they were told to do. They said by insisting that they
are taking actions "by-the-book", they would be ok.

I hope by now you have a clear picture of the situation. My kids were both
crying then, with more and more policemen arriving which scared the living
daylights of them, and with no hope to continue our holiday plans. I
believe every action inside the terminal is recorded and I would insist
that your review the CCTV recordings on that night to know that I am only
stating the truth without exaggeration. You can also see that during the
entire episode, I was not at any point defiant or rude or refused any
further check by the officers, despite the infuriating situation that me
and my family were put through.

I know it is important to stay vigilant to protect Singapore. I have young
children, I know how important it is, which is why I complied without
complaining when I had to remove my boots for scanning. However, here is an
obvious case of the security officers trying to get away with their
rudeness and aggressiveness by taking things way beyond what was necessary,
in the name of following the security protocol. They were really angry when
I asked for their names from Mr. Ricky Lim, and they knew very well then
that they can abuse their power to make things very difficult for me and my
family.

At around 8.05pm, we were informed by the Tiger Airways personnel that the
plane will have to depart and they will off-load our luggage from the
plane. At around 8.10 p.m., the State Police and other policemen arrived to
take our statement.

In the entire episode, the State Police and the SWISS PORT personnel were
the only ones who conducted themselves professionally and offered us
consolation and meaningful advice. They have also at some stages
expressed their personal views that they acknowledged this incident was
gravely mis-handled on the part of the security officers. The State Police
further confirmed that there is no case against us, and they would just
need to complete the paperwork.

The Budget Terminal manager came to meet me and said that whilst he
empathized with our situation, it is an airport security protocol and
frankly, it's "just too bad" that this happened to us.

My statement and my daughter's statement only completed at about 10.45p.m.
The counter service staff, Ms Nur Aisah Bte Ali Hassan was very helpful and
advised us on our next steps. She was kind enough to ask us to return the
next day to change the traveling dates and advised the additional charges
involved.

I am not given a report for this case, but my case number with the State
Police is P*. I was already told by the State Police that the
case is closed without further action.

For the ordeal that my family had been put through, I would want an
official reply from CAAS and all relevant authorities addressing the
following : -

Whether the security officers were trained to handle passengers with such
bad attitude and rudeness and if such actions by them are condoned by
authorities. I would insist you to refer to the CCTV recordings during
the period of the incident.

What actions would be taken by CAAS and all relevant authorities with
reference to both the security officers, Mr. Stephen S Naidira ad Ms.
Sivamalar, for their unruly behavior and attitude? Surely, characters as
such do not belong to a national airport that aspired to be a world class
traveling hub.

What actions would be taken by CAAS and all relevant authorities with
reference to Sergeant Amran Buang, who had the authority to end this
episode promptly, but instead decided to prolong our ordeal for no
justifiable cause? Is it a protocol that even after establishing the
facts that we, as a family poses no security threat, there is still a need
to escalate the matter to the authority and have the State Police and other
policemen carry out a full investigations only to end up in vain? Why is it
that even at level of Sergeant, whom I reckon is better educated,
experienced, and able to make logical sense of the whole situation, refuse
to make a simple decision and end our ordeal quickly? Is this a Singapore
civil service practice where decision making is pushed and shoved from one
level to another no matter how obvious what the final decision should be
from the very beginning?

Whether all the officers concern are properly trained and competent to
handle such situation. Besides hardware ( i.e. the protocol book), are they
taught to apply the software (i.e . common senses)? Is it really a protocol
that as long as the word "bomb" is mentioned twice by a person (once being
asked to repeat by the officer) ??then no matter what context, tone,
situation and profile of the person who said it, it would not be taken into
consideration? What if my
daughter instead of asking me a simple question about my shoes,
decided to say: "mummy, according to news report, there are speculations
that the recent Indonesian air crash may be attributed to a bomb inside the
plane." Would your security officer would come up to her and ask her to
repeat one more time, and she would be put under arrest? Your staff kept
telling me that saying the word "bomb" in the airport is illegal and I can
go to jail. They quoted newspaper examples of how people have gone to jail
because of that. I think your staffs need to be trained to understand and
differentiate situations and circumstances. As far as I knew, the people
that went to jail had VERBALLY THREATENED staff members in the aviation
service or had DELIBERATELY caused public alarm using sensitive words. My
case was clearly none of the above. Even if, I am saying if, indeed its
illegal to mention the word "bomb" in the airport no matter what context,
the person involved need to be warned ahead of time. You cannot arrest a
person for committing something illegal when the person has no idea that
the word is illegal in the first place. Your staff could have given me a
verbal warning to say that such sensitive words should be refrained in the
airport and I would have walk away remembering the warning. But instead,
they decide to let the matter escalate further.

Who is to compensate for the expenses that are already incurred and
forfeited for this trip, and our emotional stress and duress during the
entire episode? The total cost incurred, including air tickets,
accommodation, and land tours amount to about $4,200. We had to put up with
hours of humiliation with more than twenty policemen and officials
surrounding us, questioning us, checking our luggage through and through.
We had put up with never-ending questioning from different departments, and
best of all, repeated checks on my same pair of boots. My kids were
terrified, puzzled, disappointed and exhausted from this entire ordeal. My
husband and I are left with one week of applied leave and no vacation and
holiday to look forward to.

I would like to state that not everyone that we came across in this episode
had been unpleasant. I wish to take this opportunity to express my
gratitude for the empathy shown by the State Police and the SWISS PORT
personnel.

I will be waiting for your reply. Please let me know when to expect it in
email. In the mean time, I may seek legal advice for my rights and
entitlement in this incident.

Yours sincerely


Sandra

Well, that was long but I guess that only shows how much suffering and humiliation they were put through. I am just wondering how many more suffer for all those pompous bastard out there whose 1 entertainment in their daily routine is to make your life hell for the simple reason that they can. I just hope that 1 fine day, they will be put through a strip search, a full cavity search and be interrogated in nothing more than their briefs just because.....they should be...And to Sandra, I do hope that your family get at least some sort of compensation out from the whole ordeal.

They crack me up

I have a new distraction recently, they are in the form of a blog.
This makes an interesting reading if nothing else. They are extremely well written and I seriously enjoy reading them as much as I enjoy reading Dilbert.

Some of my favourites

My Thoughts In Hougang

"One cannot claim that he is a taxpayer and should benefit from the likes of those in a PAP constituency when he voted for the opposition."
I am sorry, but what does being a taxpayer has to do with what the fucked he/she voted. And in fact, does this means that all the foreign talent, those expats, tourists, children, voted?? I don't think so. In case you forgotten, those in Hougang are Singapore citizen staying in a part of Singapore, not the federal republic of hougang. Just simply because they have different political inclination robs them of the same entitlement compared to the rest of the nation? They get punished collectively for that? Last I heard, we are still having a voting democratic republic, no???

The Green Eyed Monster

Said that we are pissed with the pay rise of the ministers because we are envious. I had say this once, and I will say it again, I am definitively envious when I have a pay rise that will just slightly offset the GST increase, I know some others out there does not even get paid because they don't have a job. We have some people here who can set their own benchmark and decide their own pay and raise it not by 1 or 2%, not 10 or 20, but 100%.....
I am not really worried about what talents we retained, but rather, what kind of talent we will get. I know of teachers who got into the teaching profession not because they have the passion to teach, but because it is one of the highest paid job with excellent benefits in the civil service. They might pass for the good in the head, but some have nary any fire in the heart. It is nothing more than a job and the parents and students nothing more than customers and products and they will do anything to churn out good grades, holistic education, building characters, let the other suckers worry about that.

Which the next one is really a clincher
Bill Gates+George Soros+Mother Theresa - How Much $$
That got me worried....
In case you are a mac fanatics and have never used a Windoze machine, Bill Gates is one of the wealthiest man in the world by creating a product that has so many security and performance issues that it needs security patches before it is officially released. MSFT's monopoly is also earning it tonnes of lawsuit all over the world. Now, that makes sense why we got shit load of problem when we talk about Shin corp. Soros? Yes, a fantastic investor which also brought about the Asian Currency crisis. Hmmm.....so we have people that goes about taking profit while the rest of the world burn...how nice....And Mother Theresa, it couldn't get more wrong....she devoted most of her life taking care of the poorest destitute in the world.....for free....

And yes, I can go on and on.....

But hell, you go read it and draw your own conclusion, have a good laugh if you find it funny. If you don't like it, just click that x at the top right hand corner and you will be done. And if those from youngpapblog dislike what I like, you can click off from this page.

And just so you know, I have had a terribly enjoyable read and please do keep up the good work

When the food taste bad

Dont just swallow it down, tell it to the world. That's exactly what I plan to do with the other blog http://bohojia.blogspot.com.

What it means, Bo Ho Jia is just another hokkien phrase for not nice to eat. Or Not for human consumption.

When you tasted food this bad, it is not just an affront to your taste-bud. It also make those money you spent...well, wasted.

If the next tim someone serves up something unpalatable, don't jst swallow it, disgust and all. Send me a picture and how bad the damn food is, I will just try to make time to find it out or take your word for it, and reportit. That's all.

Just pay them more

It seems like there is some discussion lately about the impending increase to the minister of this fair island. I guess that as far as they are concern, this is warranted and in fact, in due time to prevent an exodus of talent.

However, in the word of his generation and by a civil servant no less, I would like to quote, “If people don't have a sense of value, they're worse than mercenaries...My generation has a value system. We hope the present generation does too. People who don't have that, we better forget them and hire more hungry non-Singaporeans to come here and add to our value system.” So, If the exodus of the top talent is largely due to the mercenary nature of theirs, it is probably better that they be replace by the top foreign talent that do have a good value system that can be added to ours for cheap.

For those who talked about envy, that is something that is very true and natural of that of a human being. In fact, while Gordon Gecko had you believe the driving force of the modern civilisation and economy is greed, it has been help by its twin sister, envy. And envy is what gets me green in the eye when I hear the annual pay check in tunes of 1.2 mil being drawn. To top it off, this amount will be raised to about 3 mil if they were to have their ways (which they normally will). Imagine this, you might have a chance about once or twice a month to get that amount (about a 1 in 45mil odds), but someone with the help of his peers will have this every year and most likely for 5 continuous year at a go. There is no reason not to envy that.

I admit that thus far the job have been rather well done, but unfortunately it is slipping in standards, and with fair proof to say that.

We have just recently pass a budget which by own admission, most of the minister and cabinet members would score an “F” in its comprehension. Now, if such is the level of comprehension of just another annual budget, woes behold to us commoner with nary a phd in economics to comprehend it, and how can we be assured, that the government will be able to execute it?

Our Foreign ministry seems to be doing a good job in setting on all the wrong footings with out neighbours, Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand. FDAs be damn if we get no sand and now no granite and we are not even able to even coexist peacefully with our neighbourly states.

Not to forget that our Airport have slipped in the International standing from 1^st to 4^th and since we are on the topic of aviation, how the heck does a country which prides itself in its Tri-partite relation with the Employer, Union and employee having to resort to litigation between our Silvery Kris Wing and its pilots?

But end of the day, they will get their raise while we will be contended when not getting any due to the stiffer global competition, the slacking in our productivity compared to other country and that my Chinese and Indian colleagues worked harder and cheaper and do not have to waste 2 week of the employers time in green uniform languishing in Tekong feeding mosquito.

Well, give it to them and I will just try to see if I can spread out the handout this year to offset the rising cost and competition.