Recap II

The results are finally out and what I can only do is thank God for being so merciful to me. :)
And yeah, I guess it's time to round this semester up with the list of "firsts" I've accomplished in this 6 months.

It was the first time I...
1. ... mistook a 2-hour Cell Biology test for 1 hour.

2. ... took the initiative to meet up with tutors and lecturers during the reading week. Yes, I can sense you muggers shaking your head in dismay. How could I have only done this after 4 semesters?

3. ... I fell ill during the Reading week.

Okay, it wasn't the 40-degrees-Celsius-cannot-talk-cannot-move type of illness. But the phlegm spewing predicament was enough to leave me awake till 4.30AM for two consecutive nights during the reading week.

4. ... I saw a doctor two times within 3 days.

With exams looming dangerously close and worried I wasn't showing any significant signs of recovery, I visited a dubious Silver Cross clinic at Serangoon Central twice. And it was the second fateful visit when I almost died as I attempted to pay for the bill, a whooping S$56.00!!!

Doctor Michael Wong (a name I will always remember... Grrr....) actually prescribed a GlaxoSmithKline combination antibiotic Augmentin for my lame sore throat! Since when does a GP prescribes antibiotic by major pharmaceutical companies such as GSK or Pfizer? A cheap generic Amoxycillin from India/Malaysia/Thailand would probably do the job but nooo...

Premium Antibiotics for the Nouveaux Riche

Did I mention that the inner packaging contains a petite dessicant?

4. ... I lost roughly 800 grams of weight after the examinations ended. With a sore throat rough enough to sandpaper MM Lee's skin, I resorted to healthier snacks such as dried kiwis and Fisherman's Friend, instead of my regular dosage of M&Ms, brownies and Mars/Snickers/Whatever-that- is-chocolate-bar.

It was only towards the last few days of examinations that I began pigging out.

My first stop was the dubious looking Sukiya Japanese-Thai Fusion Pseudo-restaurant at YIH. I ordered Thai Sour Plum Chicken, costing me like $7+ after a generous 10% NUS student discount. It came with a cute green jelly, miso soup and a ice green tea.

It tasted surprisingly fine but I was pretty pissed when I realized I had to clear the tray myself. No, I'm not referring to putting the tray at a allocated area but it was expected that customers separate the different cutlery in an array of containers.

Fine, I know I'm lazy, but hey, I get better service at the canteen.
Having given up on Sukiya, I decided to head to Coffee Grounds, another NUS exclusive Cafe near Medicine Library [ which incidentally is now closed :( ]. A typical meal would cost around $5.50 to $6.50.

Chicken Baked Rice with A Minuscule Brownie

Black-pepper Pasta with Mystery Soup

5. ... I wrote a cheque...
... and then proceed to bungle that up.

6. ... cleaned my cds.

Cds coming from ONE shelf only.

The daunting thought of an increasing collection is only making this stickler for neatness feel sianz-one-half.

7. ... caught my tutor dozing off. Oh wait... I retract that statement back, this is the second time. Zi Han, my Physics in Life Science tutor also fell asleep in lecture too. Heh.


8. ... get to play with expensive machines.

Okay, I'm kidding. I didn't touch the micro CT scanner (below) at all.
Apparently, this is one of the two in NUS which are the only ones in South East Asia. Million-dollar stuff are not for undergraduates to play.

9. ... saw the revamped free musical fountain at Sentosa. It seems that the show has been changed again recently and it is no longer free. :(

10. ... saw so many Dunkin donuts in a single bench.
I guess this is what happens when a bunch of donuts-deprived Singaporean siao kia goes to JB...
11. ... visited an opulent office toilet.
The pictures don't do justice but seriously, a chandelier in the toilet?

12. ... was informed that Mustafa Centre was eye-catching enough to be on a box of "Uniquely Singapore" chocolate.And you guessed it, this was sold in the shameless Mustafa.

UNSW & EDB

I won't comment much of this Economic Development Board (EDB) fiasco for now, even though it has "invested" in unknown amounts in this UNSW project. But I thought Alex (www.yawningbread.org) made a rather interesting comment:

We spent some S$100 million to host the WorldBank/IMF annual meetings only to generate bad press about Singapore. Now, with UNSW, we're doing it again.

Aural Aberration

As I listen to Russell Watson duet with Faye Tozer (of Steps!) in a freshly bought CD "Russell Watson - The Voice The Ultimate Collection", I am slowly resigning to fate that I will be penniless by the time I leave Singapore for New Zealand.

No thanks to the pent-up demand from the last semester, my personal "Must Buy" CDs is swelling faster than I can buy.

1. Linkin Park - Minutes to Midnight
I was rather skeptical about this album at first especially being less than impressed with the pseudo-U2 outfit for the first single "What I've done". But thankfully, the other tracks in the album were more edgy and less formulaic than expected.

Those 4 years after Meteora have at least paid off.

2. Silje Nergaard - Darkness Out of Blue
Another artiste who has taken her own sweet time of 4 years to record a new studio album. Silje Nergaard is back again with her trademark fusion of Norwegian pop and jazz.

The question is, when will this album be released in Singapore?



3. Olivia Ong - A Girl Meets Bossa Nova 2
A jazzy bossa nova singer, this time from the local shores of Singapore. I missed Olivia's maiden performance in NUS this year, so I swore I would purchase her latest album, A Girl Meets Bossa Nova 2.

And yes I know, it's a no brainer what the title of the first album was.

4. ATB - Trilogy
I've always regretted not buying ATB's No Silence. You could say the guilty pangs of listening to those mp3 have pricked me to purchase this album.

Containing 26 unreleased, original songs, ATB shrewdly separates them into two CDs, the upbeat ones in one disc ("Dance") and the smoother slower ones in another ("Chillout").

Talk about getting your money's worth...

5. Funkservice International - A Post Modern Life

Skellefteå-based Funkservice International brings us this wonderful chillout album, which was introduced to me by our luscious Lush 99.5FM.

It was such a mouthful that the sales assistant at a Gramophone outlet gaped when I asked her whether they carried any albums by "Funkservice International".

She then asked, "Is that the artiste name or the album title?"


6. Voice Trek - An A cappella Tale
A vocal quintet heralding from St. Paul, Minnesota, and absolutely not related to Star Trek. They may not be as critically acclaimed as the legendary Swingle Singers, but the song "Windmills of Your Mind" of this 5th vocal jazz recording was sufficient to blow me off my feet.

Of course, even when the above have been purchased, there are other cds waiting to be "upgraded" to The List. Eg. Ayumi Hamasaki, Tang Quartet, Hillsong, Parachute Band, Blank and Jones, Clarissa Monteiro, Bjork, Jamiroquai...

On a side note, does anyone knows which shop in Singapore sells albums by Funkservice International or Voice Trek?

Recap I

Every semester in NUS is unique. For better or worse.

1. Music
My favourite place to study this semester has surprisingly not been at libraries, but on ubiquitous wooden benches and tables scattered around Engineering block.

Fresh air, great view, snacking opportunities... The casual environment is almost certainly appealing as opposed to the stark muggery air in the libraries, so silent and still you could almost hear a mosquito fart.

Of course, the unrestrained atmosphere allows some to push the limits and treat the place as their homes, entertaining everyone in the vicinity with their own music, despite diamond-cutting glares showered generously on the oblivious person.

If you still do not understand what I mean, just take the MRT. If lady luck is on your side, you will be treated to a myriad of genres of music, brought to you by your fellow riders.

Therefore, presenting our music "sponsors"...

Workers' Welfare

The Straits Times
Thursday, May 3 2007
Target of skills upgrading plan: $500 pay hike
A move is under way to give low-wage workers the skills to earn at least $2000 every month or $500 extra... It will be achieved via the Job Re-creation Programme (JRP), set up by National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) to redesign jobs to offer better career prospect.

Friday, May 4 2007
New Employment guidelines aim to end discrimination
... The eight-member panel was formed last year to stamp out discrimination at work. Called the Tripartite Alliance for Fair Employment Practices, its members represent the unions, employers and Government.

If one have been catching up on the newspapers lately, you would have noticed the flurry of good news dealing with workers' welfare and increasing pay. I was almost convinced there has been a marked change in policy.

Until I read this excerpt from mrbrown.com:

My mom is working at the Tuas South Incineration Plant as a cleaner under the contract of a private cleaning company. The company pays her S$700 a month for a 5-days work week. The pay is not high, but at least reasonable.

Now, the cleaning contract has ended for this cleaning company and the contract has been given to another new cleaning company. And so my mom's new boss had a meet-the-people session to tell the cleaners his rules:

1. The pay is reduced to S$500
2. Now it has to be a 5.5 days working week
3. There will be a cut in manpower as there should not be more than 3 people working at an area, regardless how large the area space
4. No annual leave and sick leave for the first year

The biggest joke was of course, not the dire maltreatment of the employees but the pseudo auto-reply from Ministry of Manpower (MOM) after her daughter emailed them.

After clearing infringing the Employer's Act ("which the Ministry of Manpower administers" quoted from MOM's reply), Ms Chong-Tan Sok Peng , Labour Relations Officer suggests that disgruntled workers can lodge a complaint during office hours.

*rolls eyes till they threaten to dislodge from socket*

Personally, the blatant fact that MOM does not actively pursue employers who are contravening the already employer-biased Employment Act speaks volume of whom they are more inclined to protect.

Guidelines or Acts, however comprehensive are useless unless implemented.

Go go, low wage workers! Go fetch that shorter end of the stick!

Original Source of Complaint: http://willythecop.blogspot.com/

Mooooo

Amazing.

3 months after I've sent my SEP (Student Exchange Programme) application to University of Auckland, those admin people have finally replied saying:

"Greetings from the University of Auckland and the 360° Auckland Abroad Office! We have received your application to study at the University of Auckland as an Official Exchange student."

I shudder to think how long more it would take for them to process the nomination and application forms. I'm expecting a confirmation for my July term by this December.