The Happiness of a Hermit Crab

Book List - December 2011

2012-01-02T15:28:00.002+08:00

(Ok! This is the final entry to the list. It's a bit late, but then, it was the New Year's Weekend, so...)I am drawing up a DVD list. Till the end of the year, at the end of every month, I shall add a title to the list. Then from the start of next year, I will read one title a month....

Jan 2011 - Did You Spot the Gorilla? (Richard Wiseman)
Feb 2011 -Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman! (Adventures of a Curious Character) (Richard P. Feynman)
Mar 2011 - SuperFreakonomics (Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner)
April 2011 - 13 Things That Do Not Make Sense (Michael Brooks)
May 2011 - A Moveable Feast (Ernest Hemingway)
June 2011 - Quirkology (Richard Wiseman)
July 2011 - The Believing Brain: From Ghosts and Gods to Politics and Conspiracies---How We Construct Beliefs and Reinforce Them as Truths (Michael Shermer)
August 2011 - Frauds, Myths, and Mysteries: Science and Pseudoscience in Archaeology (Kenneth Feder)
September 2011 - 59 Seconds: Change Your Life in Under a Minute (Richard Wiseman)
October 2011 - The Quest for the Cure: The Science and Stories Behind the Next Generation of Medicines (Brent R. Stockwell)
November 2011 - Physics of the Future: How Science Will Shape Human Destiny and Our Daily Lives by the Year 2100 (Michio Kaku)
December 2011 - The Luck Factor: The Four Essential Principles (Richard Wiseman)

DVD List - December

2012-01-02T15:11:00.001+08:00

(Ok! this will be the last entry of the list. It is a bit late, but it was the New Year's weekend, so...)I am drawing up a DVD list. Till the end of the year, at the end of every month, I shall add a title to the list. Then from the start of next year, I will watch one title a month....

Jan 2011 - Sense and Sensibility
Feb 2011 - 300 Days of Summer
Mar 2011 - Sweeny Todd - The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
April 2011 - The Men Who Stare at Goats
May 2011 - The Rocky Horror Picture Show
June 2011- Tootsie
July 2011 - Grease
August 2011 - The Godfather
September 2011 - Frankie and Johnny
October 2011 - A Fish Called Wanda
November 2011 - Donnie Darko
December 2011 - Gosford Park

Book List - November

2012-01-02T15:10:00.001+08:00

(I must had been really busy - or really forgetful. I didn't realize I had not enter the entry for November. So here it is...)I am drawing up a DVD list. Till the end of the year, at the end of every month, I shall add a title to the list. Then from the start of next year, I will read one title a month....

DVD List - November

2012-01-02T15:06:00.002+08:00

Sem 6, Revision Week: Revision?

2011-11-26T08:10:00.001+08:00

OK, in a few hours time, I will be taking my third paper, but let me get this post out so that everything is up-to-date.

With all the lessons done in week 13, what followed was the revision week. However, I didn't do much revision for that week, as I try to get back to normal work - as normal as possible.

In the previous semester, I would had taken leave from revision week onwards (or a week before the first paper) to start my revision. However, what I found was that this arrangement was not effective. I found myself spending most of the time lazing around, doing everything except revision. It's just a waste of of my leave, and left me doing a lot of catch up at work. So, in the previous semester, I decided to only take leave on the week(s) of the exams itself. Such an arrangement turned out well last semester, so I decided to do it again this semester.

So, there I was, back at work during revision week, and only doing the revision in the evening. The progress wasn't as good as expected, but I have the whole of next week (which I would be taking leave since it's the week of my exam) to do my revision, so I wasn't that worried.

That's all for revision week actually, as far as I can remember. Now, I will get back to my revision and post about my exam next time.

Sem 6, Week 13: The Defense

2011-11-26T00:23:00.001+08:00

I am in the midst of revising for my third (and final) paper of my exams, which will be held tomorrow. However, if I don't get this post down, I will not be in time to get all the MSc post up to date. So here goes...

Week 13 was the final week of the semester, which is also the final week of my MSc. The main event of course was my thesis defense, which was on Thursday (10 Nov). Before that could happened, there was a minor scare. Initially I was told I only needed one examiner for the defense, and as such I invited only one lecturer to be my examiner. Then, just a couple of days before the defense, I was told again that I needed two. That put me in an embarrassing situation, cos my boss ZB all along insisted that I should get my co-sup to attend, whom can double as my examiner. I found ZB's insistence quite a bother, as it put me in a difficult situation, and it took me quite some effort to make him agreed to only invite one examiner. So upon hearing that I needed two examiner, I braced myself and told ZB about it. Bracing myself was indeed necessary, though ZB was quite cool about it, his smirk comment was enough to let me know how he felt about "my" mistake.

In such a short notice I definitely could not get another lecturer to be my examiner. Luckily, my unit head PS agree to stand in as my examiner. In retrospect, that was kinda a good move, cos I got to introduce my examiner to PS and ZB, and got some conversation going between them, so hopefully that might open up some opportunity in the future.

As for the defense itself, knocking together the slides was easier then thought. I did a rehearsal in front of my fellow colleagues and got very good review, though the presentation was too short and there were some refinement needed. Once those refinement was made, the actual presentation went smoothly and was better than I thought (the whole of the actual day was spent on practicing the presentation). I thought I stumbled a bit on the questions and answers, but overall I think I left the examiner impressed. ZB told me that I should be getting a distinction. I do hope so...

So with the main event for the sem - and perhaps the whole MSc course - coming to a close, it was like a big load of my shoulders. The last piece of business for the week was to attend the lecture of Advanced Organic Materials, as it was my turn to ask question during the presentation. After that as done, the instructional period for this semester finally come to an end for me. The final act will be the exams, which I will post next time.

Book List - October

2011-11-25T00:30:00.001+08:00

(Yup, it's almost the end of November, but I like to keep things in chronological order; therefore, updated till week 13 for MSc - which the end of October fell on - before coming up with this list)

I am drawing up a DVD list. Till the end of the year, at the end of every month, I shall add a title to the list. Then from the start of next year, I will read one title a month....

DVD List - October

2011-11-25T00:27:00.001+08:00

(Yup, it's almost the end of November, but I like to keep things in chronological order; therefore, updated till week 13 for MSc - which the end of October fell on - before coming up with this list)

I am drawing up a DVD list. Till the end of the year, at the end of every month, I shall add a title to the list. Then from the start of next year, I will watch one title a month....

Sem 6, Week 12: All The Fuss...

2011-11-24T23:43:00.001+08:00

Having completed the second paper, my exams are nearing the end. So let me take a bit of time off my revision to give a recap on week 12.

The Monday of week 12 (31st of October) was the deadline for the submission of my Thesis. I was all ready to make the trip down to NUS when I received an email from the Unit Head, wanting to give some suggestions about my Thesis. I was all ready to submit, but then how could I decline suggestion from my Unit Head? So down I went to the Unit Head's office, expecting to spend another whole day working on correcting my Thesis. Luckily, it was just some minor adjustment, and after those are made, I was able to head down NUS as planned, and submitted my Thesis as planned.

Submitting the Thesis marked the end of an important task, but it's also the beginning of another. Turned out, my co-sup was unwilling to nominate examiners for my thesis defense (he had his reasons, I understand...), and he was too busy to attend the defense itself too. Therefore, I had to make all the arrangement myself - with the department office, my boss ZB and my examiner (whom was selected by ZB and whom I liaised with by myself). The whole arrangement for defense was an episode by itself - partly due to the requirement by ZB - and by the end of everything, I am quite sure the whole department office knew who I am because of my constant communication with the course manager (and a couple of other admin staff for other admin matter).

Anyway, while all these were going on, there was issue of the presentation for Advanced Optical Spectroscopy and Imaging running in the background. Initially, I set a timeline of completing the draft slides by the previous weekend (week 11) with my partner. However, I failed to keep to that timeline. Luckily for me, the partner was busy too. Nonetheless, I was able to knock together the slides by mid-week, which only left me with one day to prepare for the presentation. Usually, I would take a week to prepare for my presentation, but this was not the case for this semester: 2 days of preparation for the presentation of Advanced Organic Materials and only one day for this presentation for Advanced Optical Spectroscopy and Imaging. I was still going through my slides and references minutes before it was or turn to present. Fortunately, everything went as well as it can get, and I was somewhat amazed I was able to get away with it.

The presentation marked the end of lesson for Advanced Optical Spectroscopy (for me), and was the last bit of notable action for week 12. The following week, week 13, was marked by the thesis defense, which I shall update before my exams end.

Sem 6, Week 11: All About The Thesis

2011-11-23T00:52:00.001+08:00

As I am writing this post, I have just completed the paper of the exams. I wished to bring my post up-to-date before the end of the exams, but there's still revision to be done. So here goes...

Week 11 was all about the Thesis. There were rewrites, modifications and changes. In the end, it took until the fifth draft before the Thesis was finalized.

After reviewing draft 1, my boss ZB pointed out several changes to make (rephrasing, changing chemical structure format, etc) and it took the whole day at the desk (during work) to get draft 2 done. Still unsatisfied with draft 2, ZB pointed out more suggestion to the Thesis. These changes, along with some admin work, kept me at my desk for another day. Nonetheless, draft 3 was completed and I thought it will do the job. By this point in time, I really wanted to go back to my lab work (there were some reactions that I really wanted to get going). However, within half an hour of stepping into the lab after being stuck at the desk for so long, I was being called back out again by ZB to make further changes to the Thesis, which if I didn't remember wrongly, involved some agony over how a table was presented. To modify the table according to ZB's suggestion involved re-numbering the all the chemical structures, something which I was reluctant to do. I really wanted to keep the Thesis as just that and go back to work in the lab, but I also want to have as perfect a Thesis as possible, so I got back to the desk and work on my Thesis again ("writing a Thesis is a draggy process", remarkedZB in Mandarin). Draft 4 was done relatively quickly, but still there were some small details to improve on. By then, I really wanted to get the whole Thesis over and done with, so I just make the changes without re-checking, and sent it to ZB to vet. That didn't do down well with him, and I was told off. So in the end, I sat down in front of my desk again, and spent the time to get draft 5 out, which with a little bit of help from the looming deadline, was the final draft.,P>So in the end for the whole of week 11, I spent the whole week in front of the desk (again) and finally completed my Thesis, but did little bit else. That theme of doing little bit else actually continued into the following week, which I will elaborate next time.

Sem 6, Week 10: High Anxiety...

2011-11-12T16:11:00.001+08:00

Another long overdue post. But still I wanted to get it down for the sake of completeness.

The problem about writing things that happened weeks ago was that I couldn't remember all the details about what happened, so I guess this would be a very short post.

Week 10 was all about one thing: writing the thesis. Initially I thought the first draft would be completed the week before over the weekend. However, that didn't happen. So for the whole of the week at work, I just sat in front of my desk, typing away to get the thesis done. It wasn't easy. Initially, I thought I could get it done by Tuesday or so. However, it took longer and the first draft was only late on Thursday night, where I labored at my desk till around 10pm. By the time I was done, I was drained.

Of course, needless to say, I didn't attend any lectures, except for Advanced Optical Spectroscopy and Imaging, where there was a test. I was late for the test (because I was editing my thesis, if I didn't recall wrongly), which turned out to be a disaster (I guess that's 20% overall gone). I also got to finally meet my presentation partner, whose appearance and behavior reinforced the "ghost partner" impression I had of him - he was pale, thin and had wavy long hair halfway down his back. He was also very quiet, unresponsive and was not engaged in the discussion at all.

Looking back, it wasn't an enjoyable week at all. The following week wasn't any better either and that I would write about next time.

Sem 6, Week 9: What Happened...

2011-11-02T23:43:00.001+08:00

Yes, this is a long overdue post. I am supposed to write this post 3 weeks ago. So things are a bit fuzzy and I am struggling to recall what really happened on week 9.

One thing I remember quite clearly is that I completed my assignment for Advanced Optical Spectroscopy and Imaging on time - I mean, literally on time. I spent the whole of Thursday night and the whole of Friday at work just to complete the assignment. By the time I was done, it was already 5.30pm, just in time for me to make my way to the lecture to submit the assignment. Coincidentally, It was also the first time I was attending the lecture for Advanced Optical Spectroscopy and Imaging. Was supposed to meet my presentation partner too. However, I was unable to reach him by phone.

It was about this time that I seriously wondered whether my presentation partner was a ghost: he admitted that it was unreliable to reach him by phone. We had been keep in contact through email and - except for one occasion - he always replied in the early morning hours. I was the one who was always taking the lead to keep things going, while he seemed disinterested. We had arranged to meet during the lecture and yet he didn't 'appear'. I was fine if he was just a ghost; I hoped he was not a sleeping partner as well.

As for the two other modules, I decided to stop attending the lectures. I was done with the presentations for both modules, and except for Advanced Organic Material, where I was required to attend the lecture in the final week to ask question during the presentation, I did not see the need to attend any more lectures. Anyway it's time to focus on Advanced Optical Spectroscopy and Imaging, which there was a test coming up in the following week.

As for the Thesis, I originally planned to get it going over the weekend. However, very little was done, especially on Sunday, after the Real Run, which I did the half marathon. The end result of this was that the following week was really stressful, which I would talk about it in my next post.

Sem 6, Week 8: I Have No Time...

2011-10-09T23:37:00.001+08:00

Ok, so the week that went by was the e-learning week, so there's no need to go for lectures. There were learning materials uploaded onto the IVLE, but I had not touch them yet. I have more pressing issues at hand.

The most pressing of all issues is the thesis. It is due by the end of this month, and I'm only about a third through with the writing. I initially expected to knock out the first draft by the end of this week (i.e., today), but obviously that's not going to happen. It seems more likely that the first draft is going to be out by next weekend, and that is not a good situation, because that will leave only two weeks for all the editing (by my boss and co-sup) and vetting (by the patent attorney, before sending it to my co-sup for editing). However, keeping to this new timeline is the only thing I can do now, as the alternative (i.e., delaying the completion of the draft further) will be more disastrous.

To complicate the matter - and to add more stress to an already stressful situation - is the CA of Advanced Optical Spectroscopy and Imaging. Turns out the lecturer's style is to finish teaching the whole syllables before dishing out the homework (10% overall), test (20% overall) and presentation (30% overall). It was just my luck that when he talked about it in the lecture last week, it was at the final bit of the lecture that was edited out in the recording. So, it was only on last Thursday, via the email from the lecturer, that I found out we have to submit the presentation topic and the names of the group members by next Monday, and that the test is the Friday after next. To top it all off, the homework is due next Friday. I had not been following the module very closely, so I can say I know next to pretty much nothing about what is taught. So now having to do the homework and taking the test within the next two weeks is like dropping a bomb on me, because basically it means I'll have to do catch up for the whole of next week. Then there's the presentation.

The first thing I did after receiving the lecturer's email about the presentation, was to request to do the presentation individually. The reply I got from the lecturer was that he recommended me to pair up with another student who was also looking for a group to join, which I did. And somehow, without knowing much about what is being taught, I have to come up with a presentation topic (my team-mate has no idea for presentation topic either, and basically delegated that duty to me. Sign of how the partnership is going to be?). I did come up with a very general topic just now, and is waiting for my team-mate to OK it. I guess that is one thing settle. For now.

Looking forward, there is still the thesis presentation, which will be on the first week of November (within a week after the submission of my thesis). Then there's the exam at the end of November, which means the revision will have to start as soon as I am done with the test for Advanced Optical Spectroscopy and Imaging. I have no idea for the date of the presentation for Advanced Optical Spectroscopy and Imaging, but seeing that it's a small class size and that the semester will be over soon, I am guessing it will be the week after the test. Laying everything out like that, it becomes quite apparent that I am heading for a very busy October. If only I had see it coming earlier.

Actually, I brought all these upon myself - the stress and all. If I had been a bit more studious and more consistent in following the lectures and doing up my thesis, I will not be in such a panic state now. Most likely I will be handling everything with much more ease. It's a lesson I should had already learned, as it is not the first time I am in such a situation, and I had also witnessed it happened to others. I do hope by the end of this episode, I would have finally learned my lesson, because it will do me a whole lot of good in the future. If not, I will be doomed to repeat this same mistake again - with more dire consequences.

Sem 6, Week 7: Presentations...

2011-10-02T22:53:00.001+08:00

OK, so this is the mid-term, and I had managed to get through two presentations rather unscathed.

The first presentation was on Thursday, for Advanced Organic Materials. Up till last Sunday afternoon, I was still unable to come up with topic to present. Somehow, by Monday, I was able to come up with a topic and knock together my slides. It was a rush job no doubt. Usually, my slides will more or less be done a week before presentation, and I will be practicing on my presentation throughout the week. This time round, I only practiced for two days and there I was in front of the lecture group presenting. It wasn't the best presentation I gave and there were some mistakes made (diagram too big covering the slides, unable to answer the lecturer's questions). Fortunately I was still able to pull it through, thanks to my past experience.

Second presentation was on Friday, for Bioanalytical Chemistry. This is a group work, so luckily, I just needed to prepare 5 slides. Even more lucky, the topic was assigned and it was a familiar one, so I was able to get away- more or less- with last minute work. It almost didn't happen because the lecturer wanted to postpone our presentation to the following week (we are the last group for the day, and it was getting late). Fortunately, our insistence to go ahead with the presentation paid off (we promise to keep within the time) and it is now behind us (not much Q&A on this one, because the lecturer wanted to wrap up on time. the questions are still quite ok too).

With the presentations over, it practically means I am done with the CA of the two modules above. So it's really time to focus on my thesis (due the end of the month), and on Advanced Optical Spectroscopy and Imaging. Both are worrying me quite a bit. For my thesis, I am really trying hard to complete at least the first draft by the end of the coming week, having written nothing down yet - and there's the presentation that follows. As for Advance Optical Spectroscopy and Imaging, I had not been attending the lectures and had not been catching up on the webcast. From what I watched so far, there's nothing about CAs, but I really don't know. Therefore, from now on, I will attending the lectures. Let just hope I had not miss anything important.

Sem 6, Recess Week: It Will Happen...

2011-10-02T22:30:00.001+08:00

OK, so the recess week is over. In fact, it has been over for a week already. I should have wrote this post last week, but maybe it's really 'cos I'm busy, or just simple procrastination, or both, that I am writing this now. The thing is, I don't really recall why.

So there are times when I know I have a lot of things to do, and I absolutely have to get them done. I had even got it all planned out - the schedule and all. However, when it comes to getting down to doing it, it's quite a different thing. There's a lot of procrastination, dilly-dallying, lazing around before I finally drag myself to get the things done. There always seem to be this great inertia and restlessness to overcome before I can settle down and get things going (especially on weekend). Recently I am thinking that's because I am tired. Mentally tired.

I had always believed that I had unexpended energy and can keep going on and on. Now I am starting to doubt this. There are times in the past when I thought I still have energy left after going-through some strenuous, physical activity (e.g., kayaking, soccer, even route march). It is only after I try to exert myself after the activity that I realized my tank is empty. It is the same case now: I might feel like I can still go on, but mentally, I am already exhausted.

Maybe that's why I'm not as productive and not as focus during the weekend. Maybe, after a whole week of work and studies, all I want to do in the weekend is to laze around and recharge.

So that's why instead of working on my presentation slides and thesis on this recess week's weekend (after spending all the weekdays hours at work), I ended up procrastinating mostly and achieving very little.

But, as past experience goes, I will still be able to come up with something before the presentations in the following week. I don't know how, but it's going to happen.

It will happen.

Book List- September

2011-10-02T21:56:00.002+08:00

It's the end of the month (Ok, I'm a couple of days late)! Time to update my book list!

I am drawing up a book list. Till the end of the year, at the end of every month, I shall add a title to the list. Then from the start of next year, I will read one title a month....

DVD List- September

2011-10-02T21:49:00.000+08:00

It's the end of the month (OK, I am a couple of days late...)! Time to update my DVD list.

I am drawing up a DVD list. Till the end of the year, at the end of every month, I shall add a title to the list. Then from the start of next year, I will watch one title a month....

Sem 6, Week 6: Whirlwind

2011-09-25T23:50:00.002+08:00

OK, so this post is a full week late. What happened?

Quite a few things in fact. There was a packed weekend and then a big rush throughout the past week, but I will update that in the next post.

So, let's get back to what happened in the recess week. There was supposed to be a meeting with my co-supervisor, to update him about my MSc project, but that didn't happened. The date was tentatively agreed, however a day before the meeting, he had second thought and find it more efficient that I just sent him the draft of the thesis once it is done. The reason for that my project is not his project, and he just wanted to help by agreeing to be my supervisor. Well, that's fair enough, though somehow I don't feel so good. I guess that is related to another event relating to the Chemistry Department Office.

There is an administrator for the MSc program and she is a really wonderful person, always there to help and answering all the queries (except for those that I sent when I was in a desperate attempts to land a supervisor - more on that next time). However, the same can't be said of her colleague. I emailed the administrator mid-week, asking a few questions. She, efficient as usual, was able to answer all of them except one. That one she referred me to her colleague, who asked me a few follow-up questions and then went silent. Since then, I had not heard anything from her (the colleague), even though I had emailed her a reminder and called her twice. Just to be fair, maybe she can't answer that question on her own, and she needed to forward it to someone else, and it's that someone else that's holding things up. Then again, the question I asked is a rather simple one, and I am sure I am not the first one asking it, so for it to take so long to get a reply - in fact, I am not sure I will even get a reply - doesn't really leave a good impression on me of the department office.

Oh well, enough complaining. Good things did happen throughout the week. One of them is the poster presentation during the UK-Singapore Symposium. I was out of my depth sometimes, but I think I winged it. So I am happy.As for studies, finally got a little bit of things down. Not much, but it's still progress.

Sem 6 Week 5: Still Clueless...

2011-09-12T00:20:00.003+08:00

So another week went by and I found myself thinking: what's going on?

Seriously, I think I had not been following the lectures (especially Advanced Optical Spectroscopy and Imaging) and am having trouble catching up. It is normal to feel clueless about what's going on in the lecture as it had happened before. Usually the reasons is that I don't understand the lecturer (applicable for all modules this semester), or I have been slacking in revision (also true for this semester). For the previous semesters, eventually in the end, the situation will be resolved, usually by some very painful cramming and mugging.

This semester, however, I am rather worried that I can't see any head or tails for all three modules. The reason is actually very simple: I am not familiar with the subject matter of the modules. Analytical chemistry and macromolecules are just not my stuff. Not that I am not interested in them (I do actually), but having to study something unfamiliar, and to get a good result out of it will always be difficult. Extra effort will be needed, which so far I had not been putting in...

The week past had presented a good opportunity to set at least some things in motion, but self-inflicted bad luck (shouldn't had leave the headlights on...) and the bad, old habit of procrastination robbed away those precious time I could had used to brush up on my studies. I'm having two presentations coming up at the end of this month, plus a meeting this coming week with my co-supervisor about my project. I can ill afford to waste anymore time.

No point looking back. The only way forward is to get my act together and get things going. Being optimistic, I am quite sure I can pull myself together and push things through.

On the other hand, I am getting back to work on my project next week, which I am quite sure some positive result will come through. Still not started on my thesis yet, but I should be able to crank out something by the end of the week - which, by then, I should be less clueless.

Sem 6 Week 4: Time to Get Serious...

2011-09-05T00:32:00.001+08:00

Remember what I said about Bioanalytical Chemistry? That it is non-examinable and there's really no need to study the lecture topics? Well, that's not the case anymore.

Now it turned out that, the lecturer's request to cancel the exam was denied by the administrative office because his submission of the request was late. So the exam is back on, and will account for 50% of the total mark. The other 50% will come from the presentation. There's no more small quizzes, no more class participation, and (most importantly) no more essay.

I had never come across such "unpredictable" module before, where the mode of assessment is so on-the-fly and seems to change week by week. Considering a quarter of the semester is already gone, and the mode of assessment is really bare minimum now, I think it is more or less fixed. But I won't be surprise if there are changes again.

Going by the current situation, it seems that I will be better off attending Advanced Optical Spectroscopy and Imaging on Friday instead. There's no more small quizzes during lecture for Bioanalytical Chemistry anymore, so there's no real need to attend the lecture. Plus, more importantly, I am lagging behind in viewing the recorded lecture for Advanced Optical Spectroscopy and Imaging. Also, the lecturer seems to do some drawing and calculation during lecture, which is not captured in the recordings. Thus it is really a very good idea I start to catch up by attending the lectures.

Advanced Organic Materials needs a bit of catching up too. The same goes for my MSc project. particularly the thesis part of it, which I had not started. This weekend was another weekend wasted as no serious work was being done. I had a good rest though, and ran my first half-marathon in 10 years, so it had been a good weekend, But it would had been perfect if I got some work done in between. I can't really procrastinate anymore. It's already 4 weeks of the semester gone, and with time running out, it's time to get serious. Really.

Book List- August

2011-08-31T22:06:00.000+08:00

(Finally! I am on time!)

It's the end of the month! Time to update my book list!

I am drawing up a book list. Till the end of the year, at the end of every month, I shall add a title to the list. Then from the start of next year, I will read one title a month....

Jan 2011 - Did You Spot the Gorilla? (Richard Wiseman)
Feb 2011 -Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman! (Adventures of a Curious Character) (Richard P. Feynman)
Mar 2011 - SuperFreakonomics (Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner)
April 2011 - 13 Things That Do Not Make Sense (Michael Brooks)
May 2011 - A Moveable Feast (Ernest Hemingway)
June 2011 - Quirkology (Richard Wiseman)
July 2011 - The Believing Brain: From Ghosts and Gods to Politics and Conspiracies---How We Construct Beliefs and Reinforce Them as Truths (Michael Shermer)
August 2011 - Frauds, Myths, and Mysteries: Science and Pseudoscience in Archaeology (Kenneth Feder)

DVD List- August

2011-08-31T22:03:00.002+08:00

(Finally! I am on time!)

It's the end of the month! Time to update my DVD list.

I am drawing up a DVD list. Till the end of the year, at the end of every month, I shall add a title to the list. Then from the start of next year, I will watch one title a month....

Jan 2011 - Sense and Sensibility
Feb 2011 - 300 Days of Summer
Mar 2011 - Sweeny Todd - The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
April 2011 - The Men Who Stare at Goats
May 2011 - The Rocky Horror Picture Show
June 2011- Tootsie
July 2011 - Grease
August 2011 - The Godfather

Sem 6 Week 3: Funny But Good

2011-08-30T23:18:00.002+08:00

Bioanalytical Chemistry is a funny module. Not funny in the amusing sense, but in the weird kind of way.

First of all, the lecturer (we heard) was only informed he's taking this module three weeks before the start of the semester. Then, over a hundred students registered for this module (a normal class size for a graduate module is lesser then forty; I was surprise went I walked in late to a packed lecture theatre). These led to the lecturer being rather overwhelmed. At least for the first lecture, he had no idea how he's going to conduct his assessment.

The lecturer is apparently an anti-exam/quiz/test type, preferring to have presentation, essay and project as the mode of assessment. However, with 100+ student, there's no way he can conduct presentation sessions for everyone in the way he wants (3-4 per group, and not too early into the semester so as to be fair). Then there's the issue of assessing class participation for such a big group.

Thus, for the first lecture, a good part was spent on discussing how to resolve the issue, with the lecturer rambling on and on most of the time, about what he wanted to do and why so, when it is obvious it can't be done with such a big class size. Even when offered suggestions (e.g. have quiz and exam instead), the lecturer insisted on what he wanted to do, and gave lengthy explanations.

Now, three weeks into the semester, with the class size reduced to a comfortable level, the lecturer is rolling out his plan for assessment (one presentation, one essay, small quizzes), though it's still feel pretty much like a plan-as-we-go thing, as the lecturer repeatedly state he will see how the class participation component -i.e. small quizzes - goes. (Yes, the lecturer is a long-winded type).

With the situation above, I think I can be forgiven for feeling a bit confused about this lecture. However, that doesn't really matter because of the good bits: I'm being grouped with people I know for my presentation, and the subject (which is also the essay title) was already selected. On top of that, the lecturer did away with the exam (which was originally planned), making this a non-examinable module, and the essay has a generous dateline of the supposed exam date. What this all means is that, I do not need to study anything from the lectures, I just need to remember them long enough to do the occasional quizzes at the end of the lectures.

Furthermore, I can spend more time on the two other modules, and also on writing my thesis, which I should really get started and stop all procrastination already.

Sem 6, Week 2: The Going is Kinda Tough...

2011-08-22T00:07:00.001+08:00

The three modules I am taking this semesters are:

Advanced Organic Materials
Bioanalytical Chemistry
Advanced Optical Spectroscopy and Imaging

As can be seen above, these module are not really related to my work/area of specialization. It's still ok 'cause I seeing it an opportunity to expose myself to other areas of research.

The tricky part here is that there's a timetable clash for Bioanalytical Chemistry and Advanced Optical Spectroscopy and Imaging (to be called Adv Spec from now on...). Both have their lectures on Friday evenings. So far for the past two weeks, I had been attending lectures for Bioanalytical Chemistry. As for Adv Spec, I planned to catch up by watching the recording of the lectures. So far I had only got as far as downloading the lectures into my iPad. Guess I need to get things going with the lecture recordings; More discipline needed in this department...

As for the other two modules, I still have not much idea what the lecturer for Advance Organic Materials is talking about, but I have to give a presentation in three weeks. time. Also, I haven't figure out what the mode of assessment will be for Bioanalytical Chemistry (in fact I think the lecturer himself hasn't figure it out yet).

Two weeks in, and I can see a tough road ahead. This has always been the case for every semester, so I am not really surprise. But the thing is, I am not familiar with the subjects of the modules, so it'll be a bit tougher this time round. I think I can oly do my best and see how things unfold...

At least there's some good news on the thesis side: the scale-up of intermediate is complete, and the key reaction is better understood. Now, if I can just get myself to start on writing my thesis...

Sem 6, Week 1: The Heat is On...

2011-08-14T22:33:00.002+08:00

Quietly, the new semester had started. And the first week had just concluded.

This is the final semester, so it's all about wrapping things up. For the coursework part, I had completed all the essential modules and secured a specialization (synthetic chemistry) by the end of the previous semester. Also having taken all the modules that are relevant to my expertise/job. Therefore, I am left with taking the 'filler modules' this semester - modules that I would otherwise not had taken if not for the sake of satisfying the coursework requirement.

Because I had taken so many modules in the past five semesters, choosing the modules this semester is literally a '4 choose 3' exercise, and it's made even easier when one of the modules are going to be taught by a visiting professor (the difficulty of the modules by visiting professors are known to be unpredictable, and rumor has it that this visiting professor's module is tough; I have a decent CAP, and is not really interested in the module subject, so let's not risk it...). Luckily though, I do have enough interest in the three modules, so I am not complaining.

Then there's the little problem of MSc project. After struggling for months, there is little to show. I finally got the key step to work in the model reaction. That's more than six weeks ago however, and since then there hasn't been any progress of note. The thesis is due by the end of October and I am seriously considering writing a failure analysis.

This is the last league of a three year MSc journey. Though it's not in an ideal setting for all that's described above, I'm not about to go out in a whimper. No no, I will give it my best shot and bow out with head held high. But given the situation and the short time frame, it would means lotsa stress and lotsa challenges.

So yah, the semester had barely begun, but the heat is on...

Book List- July

2011-08-02T22:29:00.002+08:00

(Ok, I admit this is overdue, and it's unlikely I will be on time. But there are always more important thing to do, so I make no apologies.)

It's the end of the month! Time to update my book list!

I am drawing up a book list. Till the end of the year, at the end of every month, I shall add a title to the list. Then from the start of next year, I will read one title a month....

Jan 2011 - Did You Spot the Gorilla? (Richard Wiseman)
Feb 2011 -Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman! (Adventures of a Curious Character) (Richard P. Feynman)
Mar 2011 - SuperFreakonomics (Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner)
April 2011 - 13 Things That Do Not Make Sense (Michael Brooks)
May 2011 - A Moveable Feast (Ernest Hemingway)
June 2011 - Quirkology (Richard Wiseman)
July 2011 - The Believing Brain: From Ghosts and Gods to Politics and Conspiracies---How We Construct Beliefs and Reinforce Them as Truths (Michael Shermer)

DVD LIst- July

2011-08-02T22:26:00.001+08:00

(Ok, I admit, I'm overdue again, and unlikely I'll ever be on time. But there are always more important things to do, so I make no apologies.)

It's the end of the month! Time to update my DVD list.

I am drawing up a DVD list. Till the end of the year, at the end of every month, I shall add a title to the list. Then from the start of next year, I will watch one title a month....

Jan 2011 - Sense and Sensibility
Feb 2011 - 300 Days of Summer
Mar 2011 - Sweeny Todd - The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
April 2011 - The Men Who Stare at Goats
May 2011 - The Rocky Horror Picture Show
June 2011- Tootsie
July 2011 - Grease

Book List- June

2011-07-06T22:24:00.002+08:00

(Ok, this is overdue, and I am never on time. But there are always more important thing to do, so I make no apologies.)

It's the end of the month! Time to update my book list!

I am drawing up a book list. Till the end of the year, at the end of every month, I shall add a title to the list. Then from the start of next year, I will read one title a month....

Jan 2011 - Did You Spot the Gorilla? (Richard Wiseman)
Feb 2011 -Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman! (Adventures of a Curious Character) (Richard P. Feynman)
Mar 2011 - SuperFreakonomics (Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner)
April 2011 - 13 Things That Do Not Make Sense (Michael Brooks)
May 2011 - A Moveable Feast (Ernest Hemingway)
June 2011 - Quirkology (Richard Wiseman)

DVD LIst- June

2011-07-06T22:22:00.002+08:00

(Ok, this is overdue, and I am never on time. But there are always more important things to do, so I make no apologies.)

It's the end of the month! Time to update my DVD list.

I am drawing up a DVD list. Till the end of the year, at the end of every month, I shall add a title to the list. Then from the start of next year, I will watch one title a month....

Jan 2011 - Sense and Sensibility
Feb 2011 - 300 Days of Summer
Mar 2011 - Sweeny Todd - The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
April 2011 - The Men Who Stare at Goats
May 2011 - The Rocky Horror Picture Show
June 2011- Tootsie

Book List- May

2011-06-08T22:43:00.001+08:00

(Ok, this is overdue. But there are always more important thing to do right?)

It's the end of the month! Time to update my book list!

I am drawing up a book list. Till the end of the year, at the end of every month, I shall add a title to the list. Then from the start of next year, I will read one title a month....

Jan 2011 - Did You Spot the Gorilla? (Richard Wiseman)
Feb 2011 -Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman! (Adventures of a Curious Character) (Richard P. Feynman)
Mar 2011 - SuperFreakonomics (Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner)
April 2011 - 13 Things That Do Not Make Sense (Michael Brooks)
May 2011 - A Moveable Feast (Ernest Hemingway)

DVD LIst- May

2011-06-08T22:40:00.000+08:00

(Ok, this is overdue. But there are always more important things to do right?)

It's the end of the month! Time to update my DVD list.

I am drawing up a DVD list. Till the end of the year, at the end of every month, I shall add a title to the list. Then from the start of next year, I will watch one title a month....

Jan 2011 - Sense and Sensibility
Feb 2011 - 300 Days of Summer
Mar 2011 - Sweeny Todd - The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
April 2011 - The Men Who Stare at Goats
May 2011 - The Rocky Horror Picture Show

Book List- April

2011-05-15T22:47:00.003+08:00

DVD List- April

2011-05-15T22:45:00.001+08:00

Sem 5, End of Semester: Aftermath

2011-05-15T22:22:00.003+08:00

OK, so the semester had ended.

Actually it ended almost two weeks ago, on 3rd of May, with the end of the examination. So why do I take so long to update.

Well, there are more important things in life than just blogging isn't it?

The exam period was not an easy time to go through. Partly because the exams are never easy (if it is, I will always be able to finish the papers, with time to spare), and partly because the exam period itself is a tough period. All the time spent in isolation to revise for the paper (it's not undergrad yrs anymore; I am not even a full time student, I don't have big groups of friends/course mate revise together), all the stress, and all the uncertainties. Everything just row into one to make it an unhappy period.

So you can understand why I am not so eager to write about it.

Anyway, another reason why I didn't post immediately is that everything was a mess after exam. During term time, there is a certain work/study schedule to follow; a certain routine of life. Now that the semester is over, the exam is over, I am going to start a new routine. By right, I should have a plan of what I want to do for the term break. And I do. However, the plan doesn't seem to fit quite right with the real situation (I'm partly - ok, mostly - responsible for it), so a lot of adjustment are needed. Slowly and surely a order will emerge, but meanwhile, things are going be rather off-track.

I still haven't talk about how I did for my exam right? Well, all I can say is that for the amount of preparation I did for the exam, I am quite satisfied with how I did. But I won't know about the result until the end of the month.

As for this term break, it is going to be the most busy one I had, cos it will be all about doing my MSc project. A piece of good luck is that now I am able to do my project full time at work. So I can now fully focus on it without any distraction. Let's hope I can knock out something by August.

Sem 5, Revision Week: Did Not Revise

2011-04-26T00:09:00.002+08:00

OK, so the revision week was just over, and I hardly did any revision.

Unlike the previous semesters, I didn't take leave for the revision week this time round. The reason is very simple: I will most likely not be using the time to do revision. From the experience of past semester, there will be a lot of procrastination, lazing around and slacking. Then the actual revision will be done a few days before the actual paper. If that happens, then it's just a waste of leave. Beside, I don't have so much leave this year, since I didn't carry a lot from last year. So I rather be going to work (especially now that I'm doing my MSc project at work) and do the revision at night and over the Good Friday long weekend. I will only take leave on the actual days of the exam.

At least that's the plan.

What actually happened was no revision was done at weeknights, and I wasted the long weekend away sleeping in, running errands, and doing tons of other useless stuff.

My first paper is on this Thursday, followed by the second paper which is on Friday. Then the last paper will be the following Tuesday (thankfully there's a long weekend in between). So now I'm taking another day of leave on Wednesday to salvage whatever I can. Let's hope I won't be wasting it away.

On a more positive note though, the result for CA2 of Advanced Topics in Medicinal Chemistry was out. I did very well for it and that somehow made up for the dismal CA1 (to a certain degree). So if I'm able to score for the exam, maybe there'll be someway back for this module afterall.

Another source of motivation for me to push through the revision.

DVD List - March

2011-04-20T21:01:00.002+08:00

Book List- March

2011-04-20T20:58:00.002+08:00

(Ok, this is overdue. But there are always more important thing to do right?)

It's the end of the month! Time to update my book list!

I am drawing up a book list. Till the end of the year, at the end of every month, I shall add a title to the list. Then from the start of next year, I will read one title a month....

Jan 2011 - Did You Spot the Gorilla? (Richard Wiseman)
Feb 2011 -Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman! (Adventures of a Curious Character) (Richard P. Feynman)
Mar 2011- SuperFreakonomics (Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner)

Sem 5, Week 13: End (of the Lectures...)

2011-04-19T23:36:00.002+08:00

OK, so the 13th and final week of lectures was just over, and it ended as peaceful as it can be.

The two main event last week had to be the CA2 for Advanced Topics in Medicinal Chemistry and the presentation for Graduate Organic Chemistry. Both were on the same day (Friday).

Took half day off on Friday to do some final revision for CA2. The preparation prior to that wasn't very ideal, but still I was able to go through all the notes. So for that half day off, just did some final brush up and went straight for the test. Luckily it was MCQ and I am able to answer all the question without much difficulty. Of course, whether my answers are right or wrong, that's another issue, but I do feel good after the test. Guess there's still some hope for this module.

I also felt quite good for the presentation. I had been practicing the whole week, memorizing and verbalizing every slides - even when I am in the lab (think the others might think I am weird talking to myself). So for the actual presentation, I think I gave a very confident performance. I would rate my presentation as one of the better ones in the lecture group. But I still fumbled on one of the key points (I was thinking A, but end up saying B). If not for that, I would say I aced the presentation.

Anyway, all that are over. Now is the revision week. Time to do some serious revision for the exams, and start shifting focus to my MSc project, which I had been neglecting for quite some time. It's going to be very fun...

Sem 5, Week 12: The End is Near...

2011-04-11T23:49:00.004+08:00

OK, So the 12th week of the semester is just over. I can really feel the end is near.

One piece of good news last week was that there will be no problem set 2 for Contemporary Organometallic Chemistry. That really took a load of me, so now I can focus on the CA 2 for Advanced Topics in Medicinal Chemistry and the presentation for Graduate Organic Chemistry, both coming up on next Friday.

Another thing I should had known about Contemporary Organometallic Chemistry is that it's exam is open-book, but somehow I only heard it for the first time last week (or maybe I had forgotten about it?). So I guess that counts as good news too.

Haven't really prepared for the CA2. This is a test I need to do well so I can pull up my grades for the module. Not expecting to do well for it, but at least I want a decent grade. This time round, the CA2 seems easier then CA1 (the topics are easier to understand, and the paper is MCQ), but I am not taking anything for granted.

Still had not started preparation for the presentation too. Sat through the second round of presentation last Friday, and I think I can do well for it. The Graduate Organic Chemistry is one module that I have high hope for getting a distinction, so there must be no mistake for this presentation (it counts towards a sizable portion of the overall marks).

Then at work, the chemistry is winding down for the current project, so that means I will have some time to focus on my MSc project. I am seriously hoping to make some significant progress this coming week.

Looks like there are quite some work to be done in the week ahead. This is fun...

Sem 5, Week 11: No Complaints

2011-04-05T00:21:00.003+08:00

OK, So the 11th week of the semester is just over. In two weeks time, the semester will come to an end. At least the teaching part.

With two more weeks to go, there are only three things left to do: the presentation for Graduate Organic Chemistry, the CA2 for Advanced Topics in Medicinal Chemistry, and the problem set 2 for Contemporary Organometallic Chemistry.

Presentation for Graduate Organic Chemistry is still two weeks away, and I had submitted the slides. For a presentation, two weeks is a lot of time to prepare. Plus after sitting through the first round of presentation by fellow course mates last week I have some idea how should I do my presentation. So I am quietly confident about this presentation.

CA2 for Advanced Topics in Medicinal Chemistry is the one that will give me some white hair. I totally flunked my CA1, so I need really need to do very well for CA2 and the exam at the end of the month. But I still don't really have a good grasp of what is taught in this this module. So yah, it's a bit of a worry. Which means lots of work required.

As for Contemporary Organometallic Chemistry, the problem set 2 has not been given out yet. But I also can't be sure of that because I skipped last week lecture to prepare for quiz 2 of Graduate Organic Chemistry last Friday. Had been skipping a few lectures of Contemporary Organometallic chemistry. I just hope this will not come back to bite me.

Oh yah, there was quiz 2 for Graduate Organic Chemistry last week. Think I did so-so. For the amount of revision I put it, I think I got away with it just right. So I am not complaining.

OK. so let's hope for a more fruitful week ahead.

Sem 5, Week 10: Relaxed...

2011-03-28T20:39:00.003+08:00

Ok, so the 10th week of the semester is just over. Things seems to be picking up, and I am feeling a bit more relaxed.

In the beginning of the week, I decided I should function in a higher energy and be more pro-active in approaching matters (like I had always been, but seems to lost it recently). Somehow it works. Throughout the week I maintain a fast pace at work and in school. Work gets done, things started moving and momentum started to build up again. The feeling of being unsettle slowly wore off, and I can say I am 80% back to normal.

Then what about the 20%? That 20% wasn't achieve yet because I don't think I am focus enough yet. I need to concentrate more. I need to be more disciplined in getting everything done. There's still small pockets of time here and there that I just slacked off or became un-focus. If I can dispel that, I will be back 100%.

The semester is coming to a close and exams is just about a month away. This week, 3 things is going to happen: the lit report for Contemporary Organometallic Chemistry will be due, presentation slides for Graduate Organic Chemistry will have to be submitted and Quiz 2 for Graduate Organic Chemistry will be held this Friday. I was suppose to complete the report and slides over the weekend, and start revising for the Quiz. So far, I have only come up with the draft for the slides.

Then there's still the disturbing fact that I crash my CA1 for Advanced Topics in Medicinal Chemistry. So why am I feeling relaxed? I don't really know. Maybe it's the realization that the semester are heading to an end, and the stressful mid-term is over; maybe is the satisfaction that things are picking up once again, and I am once again feeling confident. I am really not sure.

But one thing I do know is that, it had been an OK week and I should keep the momentum going to make this week a good week. So, time to get back to work.

Sem 5, Week 9: Unsettled

2011-03-21T23:52:00.002+08:00

Ok, so the 9th week of the semester was over yesterday. And somehow I am feeling rather unsettled.

After a bumpy 7th and 8th week, I thought things should be going more smoothly last week. Especially since the turmoil that is mid-term tests is over, and some level of peace had been restored.

I thought wrong.

Somehow I was feeling unsettled. As in, I wasn't focus. I was not concentrating enough; was not putting in the effort to get things back on track.

It's not just in studies also, but in work too. Work and studies behaves in the same way, the more one leaves them alone, the more they pile up (and the faster they pile up).

I really don't know why was I feeling unsettled. Maybe the horror of CA1 (Advanced Topics in Medicinal Chemistry) is still haunting me. Or maybe it's because I got a new TV in my room, and it's becoming a distraction. Maybe it's because I'm doing too many reactions at work, and not nearly doing enough to keep things in order )it always bothers me if my reactions/record/compounds/etc are not in order...)

Or simply, it's just mid-term, and I am feeling a bit worn and tired.

Whatever the cause, the semester will end in roughly a month's time, and the clock is ticking. Since I had identified a few possible causes, I think I will just work on them. Of course, together with a hearty dose of hard work and effort, I will be able to get back on form again.

Let's hope for a better 10th week.

Sem 5, Week 8: Mid-Term

2011-03-14T20:46:00.003+08:00

OK, so the 8th week of the semester was over yesterday. And it's time to re-evaluate the objective for this semester.

Lit scan for Contemporary Organometallic Chemistry was submitted on time. The next time for this module will be the lit report, which will be due in two and a half weeks' time. There are more pressing issues at hand, so I won't be worrying about this lit scan until next weekend. But I had skipped the past two lectures, so it's time to do some catch up.

Skipped last week lecture for Graduate Organic Chemistry too, so need to catch up on that also. The next big thing for this module is the presentation. Need to submit the slides next Monday. No question this will be the main event this coming week...

Sat for CA1 of Advanced Topics in Medicinal Chemistry last Saturday. (It's the reason why I had been skipping lecture this week...) It ended as a disaster. There are two questions. I struggled through part 1 of question 1, and my mind was totally blank for question 2. To top it all off, I could had answer part 2 or question 1 easily, but somehow - I don't know why- I left that part out and didn't answer it at all. So yah, most likely I had flunked this CA1.

This isn't the most ideal way to end the mid-term. But then the only thing I can do now is to look ahead. It's time to take stock and evaluate the situation. From the looks of it, I will definitely need to prioritize the module. Maybe I will need to lower my expectation for this semester a bit. Now in the second half of the semester, there cannot be anymore mistake.

Luckily, the good news for last week is that some progress had been made in the project. That's the only bright spot for last week.

Sem 5, Week 7: Wayward

2011-03-07T21:55:00.002+08:00

Ok, so the 7th week of the semester was just over yesterday.

Beginning of the week I attended the wake of the brother of one of my skating kakis. These kakis are friends I made after I came back from Basel. Though we don't meet up often (maybe once a couple of months nowadays...), and is not really familiar with each other's life, we still come together to celebrate each other birthdays and, in this case, to share a time of sorrow. I guess as adult friends go, this is already very good.

Had quiz 1 for Graduate Organic Chemistry on Friday. For this quiz, I skipped the Thursday's lecture for for Contemporary Organometallic Chemistry. The quiz was easy enough, though I'm quite sure I will miss a few points here and there. Oh well, it's over, look for to the next quiz then....

Was supposed to complete lit scan for Contemporary Organometallic Chemistry over the weekend. Somehow that was not done. Instead, I took a long, extended rest over the weekend, doing nothing and getting myself a TV along the way too. Slacking for the whole weekend is a luxury I can ill-afford. Now I have quite a bit of catch-up to do this following week.

Advanced Topics in Medicinal Chemistry is another module I need to do catch up with. The CA1 is this coming Saturday, and I was supposed to start revision for it last Friday. Maybe the sense of relieve after quiz 1 for Graduate Organic Chemistry lingered around for too long. I dun feel like getting back to work/study when I'm feeling so relieved...

Luckily for me, I had recovered from flu (and the irritating cough that followed). So it's time to stop things from getting even more wayward and putting them back on track.

Book List- February

2011-02-28T22:05:00.002+08:00

It's the end of the month! Time to update my book list!

I am drawing up a book list. Till the end of the year, at the end of every month, I shall add a title to the list. Then from the start of next year, I will read one title a month....

Jan 2011 - Did You Spot the Gorilla? (Richard Wiseman)
Feb 2011 -Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman! (Adventures of a Curious Character) (Richard P. Feynman)

DVD List- February

2011-02-28T22:03:00.001+08:00

It's the end of the month! Time to update my DVD list.

I am drawing up a DVD list. Till the end of the year, at the end of every month, I shall add a title to the list. Then from the start of next year, I will watch one title a month....

Jan 2011 - Sense and Sensibility
Feb 2011- 300 Days of Summer

Sem 5, Recess Week: Worries and No Worries

2011-02-28T21:43:00.002+08:00

(I was supposed to post this yesterday, but kinda slipped my mind...)

Ok, so the recess week came to an end.

I didn't achieve all that I set out to do, but was nonetheless still satisfied with the progress I made. Got started with the literature scan for Contemporary Organometallic Chemistry, and the revision for Graduate Organic Chemistry went well. Didn't really touch Advanced Topics in Medicinal Chemistry, but I'm sure it will work out in the end (I dunno how, but it will...).

Quiz 1 for Graduate Organic Chemistry is on this coming Friday. Like I said above, the revision is going well, and I should be able to do ok for the test. CA1 for Advanced Topics in Medicinal Chemistry is at the end of next week. Among the three modules I am taking this semester, this module is the toughest, so the CA is a bit of a worry.... but I shall deal with it after this Friday.

Literature scan for Contemporary Organometallic Chemistry is due next week too, but by then I should be done. Afterall, how difficult is it to collect a citation of 20 papers on Pd-catalyzed C-C coupling? Already I had got 5 citations down, and all I have to do is to add a couple of citation everyday and I will be done. So I am not worried about this at all...

What I am really worried about is my project. 2 months gone and I had only done three reactions. I haven't even synthesized the key intermediate yet. And the work on my slides had been on hold since January. Some real progress has to be made in the next month or so.... gotta make it happen....

Another worry is that I am kinda down with a flu. Let's just hope it will not slow me down and I can recover in time.

Sem 5, Week 6: It's a Mess...

2011-02-20T22:44:00.004+08:00

Ok, the 6th week of the semester is just over.

Gave the presentation for Contemporary Organometallic Chemistry. Not really satisfied with it 'cos I wasn't well prepared for it. The night before the presentation I was still writing my script. Usually by that time, I would had know what to say for each slides (down to every single word) by the back of my hand. For this presentation though, I even have to improvise for some of the slides, as in to come up with the phrasing on-the-stop. The end result is a short presentation (shorter than the required 20 min) peppered with erm-erms, ah-ahs, and alot of points unmentioned.

But looking on the bright side, at least I was able to answer all questions asked. And I will not flunk (it takes a huge effort to fail a presentation actually....), so I think I'm quite ok for this module so far. Anyway, it's over, no point to keep thinking about it.

What I ought to think about though, is how to plan for the mid-term break in the upcoming week. After the mid-term break, term tests will come, so it's really high time to do some catch-up and sort out all the mess. And there's no better time to do that than the mid-term break, which only last a week. So everything has to be fast, faster, fastest.

And there's quite a bit of mess to sort out. This week was supposed to be a good week to do some catch up and put everything in order (to some degree at least). However, somehow I got hit by a bout of lethargy and low-energy. There's work to be done, but suddenly, I either don't feel like doing them, don't know where to start, or just simply just too tired to do anything. Maybe it's the carry-over fatigue from working on the presentation slides, or maybe it's cos things are kinda slow at work (I was on course for a good part of the week; and the momentum at work is somehow related to momentum in studies...), or both. Anyway, things should be back to normal starting tomorrow, and I can start putting everything back in order again.

It's a mess now. It really is.

DVD List

2011-02-13T22:15:00.002+08:00

(Actually, I wanted to post this on 31st Jan, but because of CNY, so...)

I am drawing up a DVD list. From now till the end of the year, at the end of every month, I shall add a title to the list. Then from the start of next year, I will watch one title a month....

Jan 2011 - Sense and Sensibility

Book List- Jan 2010

2011-02-13T22:09:00.002+08:00

(Actually, I wanted to start this on 31st Jan, but because of CNY, so...)

I am drawing up a book list. From now till the end of the year, at the end of every month, I shall add a title to the list. Then from the start of next year, I will read one title a month....

Jan 2011 - Did You Spot the Gorrila? (Richard Wiseman)

Sem 5, Week 5: Ditch

2011-02-13T21:52:00.005+08:00

Ok, The 5th week of the semester is just over.

One word that's been on my mind recently is the word "ditch". It's not that I never heard of it before; just that I very rarely use it. In fact, I still don't use it. Just that it had been on my mind recently, that's all.

So why the sudden interest in the word "ditch"? Because I realized that it's really easy to stay focus on the tasks at hand if I start to ditch some of the unimportant stuff away. Not literally (not always, at least), but more metaphorically. I have quite a lot of wants, but only a few needs. For example, I need to study, but I want to watch Youtube (indiscriminately). So, if Youtube is getting in the way of my studies, then I just 'ditch' my Youtube-watching habit away; and it's really easy to do that. Already I had 'ditched' quite a few habits of mine to focus on my work and studies and other important stuff. Somehow, it's just easier to break away from habits by thinking that I am 'ditching' it than to think that I am "ban" from doing it. I dunno, maybe it's an empowerment thing; but whatever works....

Ok, so for now, I shall 'ditch' blogging for the next one week, and go back to work.

Sem 5, Week 4: It Will Be Done

2011-02-07T00:27:00.003+08:00

OK, the 4th week of the semester is just over. Because of the Chinese New Year holiday, there's no lecture this week.

I don't want to talk about my study progress this week, simply cos it's late and I want to go to sleep soon. Writing about it will take too much time. Plus, it's no fun talking about the same thing every week. I rather write anything that comes to mind.

The 4th week of the semester means the beginning of mid-sem, the point in time where I should start to worry - or even be scared. This is because all the presentations, report deadline and the (dreaded) mid-term tests are coming. There're a few things that makes me quite worried, but I'm quite sure I'm gonna manage to get through it. I know this from past experience. There were times when things looks worrying and I dunno how I am gonna to manage to get through it, somehow I did. So it's the same this time. I have no idea how I am gonna get things done, but they will be done. Eventually.

OK, it's late. Time to have a good rest before starting tomorrow to get the worrying stuff done. I still have no idea how I'm gonna do it, but I'm sure by the ned of next week, they will be done. Definitely.

Sem 5, Week 3: Seeing The Light

2011-01-30T22:06:00.001+08:00

OK, so the 3rd week of the semester 5 was just over. I am still not doing as much as I like to.

However, instead of just complaining every week about how little was done and how slow the progress, I am gonna focus on the positive side of things. No, I am not trying to delude myself. Just that I believe it is more constructive to encourage myself and to be optimistic. There's no point to beat myself down all the time. Other people can take care of that...

So anyway, I don't think I had mentioned that Advanced Topics in Medicinal Chemistry is a 4-lecturer module, with each lecturer taking turn to give lecture for 3 weeks. The first lecturer had concluded her part of the module this week. Her part of the module doesn't seem so difficult and that's good; but still, there's lots of reading to do. Luckily next week is the Lunar New Year holiday. I can use the time to catch up.

Haven't started on the assignment of Contemporary Organometallic Chemistry. The presentation schedule was out this week and the presentation topics were assigned. Yes, assigned by the lecturer. Another take-home assignment was given out today, and so all the CA stuff for this module was given out. Maybe I should start getting busy over this module and gun it down first.

It's lecture as usual for Graduate Organic Chemistry, and I am kinda getting the hang of things. Definitely I need to bring in a jacket to keep myself warm throughout the long lecture. As for what is being taught, I can still follow. Just need a bit more revision and I should be up to speed.

No reaction done for my MSc project this week. It's kinda challenging managing both work and project at the same time, but I do have a plan. Will be rolling it out next week. Let's see how it will go...

Next week is the Lunar New Year, so there's no lecture for all three modules. Perfect time to catch up. If I am able to do that, then everything should be fine.

Already I am seeing some light...

Sem 5, Week 2: Failure to Launch

2011-01-23T22:40:00.003+08:00

Ok, so the 2nd week of semester 5 was just over. Very little, if not nothing, was done.

The assignment topic for Contemporary Organometallic Chemistry was given out today. It's not a big assignment actually. In fact, compare to other assignments/ projects I had done previously, it's quite easy. What is more challenging is the presentation, which according to the lecturer, will constitute to a significant amount of the CA. I selected my topic area, let's see whether I can get it next week.

Presentations and test always worries me, simply because there is a lot of work involve, and not that much time to get them done. After doing this course for two years, one of the thing I know very well is that time is tight, very tight. From the get-go in the first week, the pace of study should already be fast and furious, everything should be organized and efficient. If not, the outcome can be quite undesirable.

Which is why I am kinda bothered that I'm not getting things off the ground and running yet. It's already two weeks and a lot of things already been covered.

And it doesn't help matter that lectures on Advanced Topics in Medicinal Chemistry is not recorded. As much as I try, I still fall asleep in lecture, and I still have a very short attention span. Maybe it really has to do with the way my brain is wired. But until I find the real cause and solve it, the only way for me to keep up with the lectures is extra revision. And that equals to studying at a fast and furious pace in an efficient and organized manner, simply because I can't possibly devoted anymore time on this module by compromising on other stuff on my plate (e.g. work...).

Graduate Organic Chemistry is the only module that is going OK at the moment. Only problem is the lectures are 2.5 - 3.5 hours long on a Friday night. Yes, this is another situation where previous experience from doing this course for 2 years comes in handy; it's not something I never encounter before. I still can manage.

What I don't have experience in is my MSc project. Started my first reaction and for the first time in a very long time, I am staring at a empty RBF after rotovaping down all the solvents of the organic extracts. Yes, there is no product; the product is missing. And this is the first step of synthesis. I planned to get my first compound out by end Feb, and that is looking like a distant possibility now...

Anyway, the new week starts tomorrow. Seriously hope to get some momentum going and not be stuck in another week of failure to launch.

Sem 5, Week 1: Running Out of Time

2011-01-16T23:09:00.002+08:00

OK, so the first week of the semester had ended.

I had registered all 3 of my modules (plus my project module). Didn't really have to consider too much as I had already planned what to take along ago and don't really have much choice. The three modules are:

1) Graduate Organic Chemistry
2) Contemporary Organometallic Chemistry
3) Advanced Topics in Medicinal Chemistry

Now, module 1 is an essential module, so I have to take (and I had taken all the other essential module; this is the last one). As for module 2, I need to take it to satisfy the criteria for the area of concentration in synthetic chemistry. As for module 3, I could had use it to satisfy another area of concentration (medicinal chemistry), but that will involve taking another practical module. That will be too much work, so I am just taking module 3 out of interest. Besides, it's closely related to my work.

So after going through the first week, I would say this semester is quite manageable. The syllables seems reasonable and the workload seems fine too. I'm hoping for an average A- this semester. If I stretch myself a bit and put in a bit of focus, that should be achievable.

But of course, reality almost always doesn't play out so nice. There's the project bit which needs quite a bit of attention. Then there's work and other commitment I need to manage. Plus I can always count on unexpected/unforeseen situation popping up. Oh yah, and there's Murphy's Law. From experience of previous semesters, what is likely to happen is that, after seeing to everything else, there is only little time left for studies. So if I really want to get the grade, that means careful planning with delicate balancing of everything, taking in account everything mentioned above, with little margin for error. And there's a timeline for everything.

Already I am running out of time.

And So It Begins (Again)....

2011-01-10T21:29:00.003+08:00

This morning, I registered the modules I'm gonna take for this semester.

Yes, the new semester had began. My first lecture will be on this Wednesday.

More than just the beginning of the semester, this Wednesday will also marks the beginning of my final year (at least that's my plan...)

And this year, on top of the usual coursework, I am doing my MSc project (more details on that next time)....

So this year, it will be al a bout balancing work, study and project... on top of everything else.

From this Wednesday onwards, this year is gonna be so fun...

2010 - A Quick Review

2010-12-31T17:54:00.003+08:00

So, with 6 more hours to the end of the year, there's still time to do a quick review. So here goes:

Looking back, 2010 for me was split into two halves. The first half is about me trying to save myself from being booted out of my MSc course (and I succeeded, phew!). The second half was more complicated as it is not only just about me keeping the momentum of the first half, but also about me handling a few other situations - some good, some bad, and all of them I will not mention it here (well, maybe not now, at least).

The first half of 2010 was like so far away that it feels like it happened last year in 2009; on the other hand, the second half seems like it's not about to end with the year, even though many things had already come to a conclusion. I guess that's just the way things are: a year usually begins by carrying forward whatever is left over from the previous year, and will only really starts after a couple of months into it (at least).

But well, I am not complaining. Overall, a lot of things had happened in 2010, and a lot of things had been achieved. There are simply too many to name here, but they are mostly good, and seldom bad. All of them come together to lay out a good 2011 ahead.

And I just can't wait for the new year to start.

Momentum

2010-12-12T22:43:00.003+08:00

During term time, when time is really tight, I can keep my momentum and keep everything going.

However, during the semester break, I will just slow down and be more relax.

Of course this is understandable, but it is not a nice case. Because I still need to work, and there are many things for me to catch up.

So the end result of being more relaxed -or, in other words, losing my momentum- is that my work will become a bit disorganized and I won't be as productive (at least I think so) as compared to term time. Then it will take a while for things at work to be back to order again. This has been the pattern for the last couple of years.

As for the things that I needed to catch up, some of them had been bothering me for quite a while and I really wish to get them off my back as soon as possible. The backlog at work is one example. It has been dragging on for much too long. Seriously, I will be much happier if I can clear them off ASAP (and it's not something I can just sweep it away and pretend they don't exist...)

However, at the rate I am going, I doubt I can even clear a significant portion of it before the start of the new semester.

I badly need to switch on that term-time mode again and get back into momentum...

As Usual...

2010-12-06T23:14:00.003+08:00

(Hmm.... it's been half a year since my last post, maybe I should write something...)

OK, so it's been 6 months since my last post, and what had I been up to?

Nothing unusual really

So another semester of my MSc course had come to an end. The exam was over about a couple of weeks ago. Think I did ok and the only thing that bothered me about it was that whether I wrote down my matric number (instead of my email id) on my answer booklet. But oh well, my time and energy are too expensive to worry about such trivial matter, I will know when the result is out in a few weeks time.

Then for other things that had happened in the past 6 months, I am simply too lazy to mention them now - I can't possibly summarize everything in one entry anyway.

However, what I will say is, currently I am on semester break and as usual, there are a list of things that I planned to get done or catch up with. With a lot of discipline and a bit of luck, I think I will be able to accomplished everything on the list.

Already, I am running out of time -again.

My First Mac....

2010-06-05T23:50:00.002+08:00

This is the first ever post on this blog to be written using a Mac. Yes, I bought iMac; and yes, this is my first mac.

So how do I feel about it? I of course feel very good about it. It's quite cool actually: A big monitor, a compact (wireless) keyboard, and a sleek (also wireless) mouse. I really like it a lot.

There are still some features I need to get used to, and maybe some accessories I still need to buy, but it's really nice like this already.

Maybe I should start writing more blog entries from now on.

Made It....

2010-05-31T21:35:00.003+08:00

My exam results were released today. And yes, I made it. Better then I thought. So my MSc adventure lives on.

New semester will only begin in August. Now with one big worry off my chest, I can spend the next couple of months fully focus on:

Watching some movies;

Watching some dramas;

Reading some books;

Starting something;

Losing some weight;

Running some distance;

Blading an even longer distance;

and etc (which I have not thought of it, or I simply don't want to say).

Ah! I feel so relieved....

As The Dust Settle/ Slow Start

2010-05-12T21:08:00.002+08:00

Ok, I think previously I mentioned that the exam results of this semester will determine my survival in the MSc. Well, the exam was just over and I do feel good about it... have to say its the semester I had so far.

But as for the results... I don't know. I really have no idea. I feel kinda 50/50 about it. So I'm not really worried at the moment, just had to wait for the end of the month to see whether I make the mark.

For the exam, I took two full weeks of leave from work. So just got back to work last Friday. One of the scientist remarked that I should take a few more days off just to relax, I replied "that's not like me". It's only partly true, cos the other parts are 1) I am running low on leave (need to save it for next sem's exam); 2) I am away for so long, if I don't get back asap, I might lose touch with my lab skill, lose touch with the lab in general, and might even lose my lab partner (those who knows, knows what I mean).

Anyway, when I left for exam, the team just started on a new project. Not much progress since then, still making the starting material (SM), so I am able to have a slow start upon my return, doing scale-up of the SM. Step 1 proceeded smoothly, step 2 I got stuck: it involves anhydrous condition at -78 degrees, a condition I never seem to master. So at the end of reaction, TLC indicated a big chunk of starting material not reacted, and a bit of product. Nevermind, worked it up and purified it. Got quite a sizable amount of the product, and it's a clear oil (always a good sign). Ran the LCMS and compared it to my partner's data: it doesn't match. Now I am a bit worried. Will run a NMR tomorrow and see what is this stuff I have. And I better be able to identify it.....

It's only Wednesday and already next Monday's meeting is not looking good.

New Year, New Hope?

2010-01-28T21:48:00.004+08:00

Yes, I know, the first month of the year is almost coming to an end, and it's a bit late to write something about looking forward to the new year, etc etc....

But then again, it's better to be late than never right? And considering that my previous post was more than two months ago, I think it's about time I write a new post already. It's still the beginning of a new year, so I can still write about what I think about this coming year.

So let's begin... of course, I will say this coming year will be exciting (as always). No two years are the same, so this coming year will be different from the rest. Will it be better? I believe so. Will it be tough? Yes, there are challenges ahead, but nothing I am too worried about. Already I am facing a challenge at the moment, but I should be ok (I will know for sure by mid year....). Most of all, will it be fun? Yes I am sure of that. I will be very busy, but I will be enjoying every moment of it. There are so many things I wish to do!

So what I plan to do for this new year? Well, I gave up on any resolutions, since I am never able to stick to them anyway. However, there are still a few things I still wanna achieve. Things like losing some weight (how I wish I can get back to 65kg...), running the StanChart marathon (but let's start with AHM first....), start a business (I wish to get rich you know...), be more proficient in my profession (I'm a chemist, time to know more Chemistry, damm it!)... and a few other things that if you know me well, you will know. Anyway, if I achieve anyone of the above, I would be very happy.

Then there are a few minor things that I will like to do - things that may or may not make any impact to my life, but I will feel better doing them anyway. Things like reorganizing my room, clearing my backlog at work (as soon as possible), saving more money, and all that.

And also, I will try to blog as often as possible. I only blogged 5 times last year, and there are still a few 'big pieces' I haven't get it out (i.e. the final piece of the Epic, and the Three weddings). I think it's about time I do something about that. No promise, but I will do the best I can. In fact, I think that shall be the theme for this coming year.

No promise, but I will do the best I can.

Here I Go Again....

2009-08-11T20:54:00.002+08:00

All right, so once again, a new semester had begun, and it's time for me to hit the books again.

(For those of you not updated, I am currently taking a part time MSc course in NUS. Already I had gone through one semester, and.... well, you can contact me if you wanna know more...)

A new semester always brings about a feeling of a new beginning, a new hope, and an opportunity to start afresh. There is always this belief (at least for me) that with all the experience gained and lesson learned in the previous semester, this will be a better semester where finally one can catch up with what one missed the last time round. (I seriously need this sem to be better, and I have lotsa catching up to do...)

If only life is like that.

But life is not. Life is rather repetitive for me right now (mostly due to work I guess). In fact, it is so repetitive, it erodes away a bit of the excitement of the beginning of a new semester. It only hit me yesterday that the semester had already begun, and my first lecture is tomorrow, and I am supposed to be gearing up for it and getting ready for the challenge a new semester brings (at lest mentally, I should be getting ready...).

It's past 10pm now, and I am still so unready for tomorrow: I had not get my stuff ready, and I had not get myself readying. Instead, I am down here writing this blog. Hmmmm... so I should stop writing this blog and go pack my bag. At the same time, I will get myself into the mood for the new semester.

The new semester had begun, and here I go again....

Couldn't Get This Out of My Head......

2009-07-20T22:56:00.006+08:00

Huey 'piano' Smith & The Clowns - Don't You Just Know It (Snatch OST)

Over the weekend, I was able to catch 'Snatch' on HBO (I seldom watch HBO....). I have to say, I really like the movie, for its' fast pace, good plot, and top of it all, its' bunch of interesting characters.

However, what really stuck in my head was the song that was played when the ending credits started to roll. The tune was so catchy, that I Google it, found it on Youtube, and played it over and over again until I lost count. It got so stuck in my head that it was still playing in my head when I started work this morning (especially the chorus), and must had took me a good half an hour to finally 'switch' it off.

So here it is, I putting it up here for all of you to enjoy. Hope you guys like it as much as I do.

I Run Again

2009-06-09T21:01:00.002+08:00

Less than 30 minutes ago, I just completed my first run in two months. All I can say is, I am happy, and.... WEAK!!!!!

After more than two months of inactivity, I finally decided today that I will go for a run. I am so glad that I did, for I had almost forget how good a mood regulator that running is. Also I had also forgot how running form a part of my life/ daily routine.

Maybe that is what is missing for the past two months, which is why I find it so hard to get life back to 'normal' after the disruption that is ICT and examination.

Yes, I was kinda struggling to put life back in order after my exams. It's been a month since my exams and I find it rather surprising; I was only away from work for one and a half month, and I didn't expect it will take so long to get re-accustomed to work again. (My boss might played a part, but that's for another day...)

So anyway, I came back home, immediately changed into my running gear and out I went running round the neighborhood. I didn't know how far I ran, but I ran for 45 min. I wasn't very fast, sometimes I was just jogging fast, but by the end of it, I was hot, sweaty, a bit light-headed and happy.

It feels so good to be running again after so long. I should do this more often. In fact, I will do it again tomorrow.

Been a Long Time.....

2009-05-25T21:59:00.005+08:00

It is entirely possible, that some of you are wondering why had not I been blogging for almost 5 months?

Especially since I was supposed to write about 3 weddings.

Especially since I still have the final installment of my Epic trilogy to complete.

The answer is, I had been busy.

Busy with work. Busy with studies (yep, I am studying now... part time).

Busy with life.

Blogging can wait while life goes on. And on. And on. And on.....

And then I had also been lazy.

While every now and then I can spare some time here and there, I was just too lazy to blog.

Or simply too tired.

I don't know. But now since life had kinda resume back to some old pattern, maybe I can get back to some regular blogging.

Or something like that.

I hope.

A New Year

2009-01-01T23:00:00.002+08:00

A new year, a new hope.

Before I look at the year ahead, let's start by looking back at the year passed. For me, 2008 had been a rather good year. Got a pay raise and a bonus; extended my contract; the project I was working on is moving on to the next phase; caught up with K (my boss in Basel) when he came visiting; and most of all, got a education grant and successfully fought back to school when my application for the MSc course (part-time, coursework) was accepted.

However, that's not all. My sister got married; so was few of my friends; made new friends when I picked up inline-skating again and reunited with some old friends through the power of internet (Facebook, to be exact). I also got to see my nieces and nephews for the first time! They are so cute!

I'm sure there are a few more good things that happened last year, but it slipped my mind. It doesn't matter. Because I'm sure 2009 will be another good year with many good things happening. Of course, there will be challenges and bad times, but why bother about them? What's the point of remembering them? There is no point; just get through them, learn the lesson, keep the experience (if there are any) and forget about the rest.

Yes, 2009 will be another good year. It's up to me to make sure of that. There are a few things I want to achieve in this coming year. I ought to make them into the New Year's resolutions, but then I read an article that said making New Year's resolutions might be bad for mental health. So I am not going to make any resolution. Nonetheless, I do have plans and I am hopeful I will achieve what I want achieve. This is the year where everything will happen.

There is hope, there are plans and my morale is high. Therefore I shall not wait.

Let the year begin.

3 Weddings

2008-12-16T21:28:00.003+08:00

Over the period of 3 weekends - from late November to early December - I attended three weddings. One of them was my sister's wedding, another was my ex-classmate's wedding and the third one was my friend's.

So did I have any after thoughts and gathered any experience? Of course I did, or else I would not be writing this entry, would I?

However, to squeeze everything into one entry will not do as each wedding is special. Also, the thoughts and experience gathered from each wedding are also unique and different (ok, some of them are the same, but people who know me know how much I like to repeat myself again and again and again...).

Therefore, what I will do is that I will (try to) write a three part series about these weddings. Each part will be about one of the weddings (duh...). So stay tune.

(At this point, some of you might ask: then what is the point of writing this bit? Well, just to add something new and update my blog. How about that?)

My Tail Hurts....

2008-10-16T20:11:00.002+08:00

OK, so in my last post I said about wanting to run often. However since then, I had yet to go for another run.

Why? Cos during my previous run, I felt a sharp pain at my tail bone (wait, there must be a proper term to describe that segment of the spine, let me check.... ah, coccyx). The pain persisted into the next day and at its' worst, it hurts whenever I stood, sat and even when I sneezed.

So went to see the doc, who diagnosed that there might be a crack at the coccyx which was caused by the fall I sustained (landed on my bottom) while inline skating a couple of weeks ago. The doc prescribed some painkiller and advised rest, which means I shouldn't be running; other exercise are still ok, but "if it hurts. Stop."

Running certainly hurts, even if it means chasing after a bus 100m away. It aggravated the pain, so that means I didn't run for the past week. Just as a precaution, I didn't join my kakis for the weekly skating session over the weekend (in case I fall again).

OK, the pain is still around, though it's much subsided now. The positives I am getting out of this episode is that I now sit (and can only sit) with a proper sitting posture. It also make me realized how much strain and stress was placed on the coccyx whenever I stand or sit or in motion. But for now, with the weekend approaching, I only wish the pain will go away.

Once In A Blue Moon

2008-10-09T21:24:00.002+08:00

OK, I had just gone for a run for a first time in quite a while (couple of weeks I guess...). All I can say is:

WEAK!!!!!

There used to be a time where I ran frequently. Even when I was in Basel, it's up and down the Rhein river (just behind the apartment where I stayed) 3 times a week. Now, for whatever reason, running had become something that I do once in a blue moon.

Of cos, I had been jogging with good buddy TH twice a week, but even that is a bit on and off. Also, it is just jogging; not quite the same as hard running.

There is really a need for me to run. Beside keeping me fit and healthy, there is the very pragmatic reason of getting in shape to pass IPPT. Talking about getting in shape, although round is a shape (yes, I had piled up quite some weight for the past year), I prefer to be in another shape that has more definition; so yes, that's another reason I very much need to run.

However, on top of it all, running is a very good and effective mood regulator. So running makes me happy, keeps my morale high and prevent depression from taking over (nope , I am not depression...). After all, sound body, sound mind right? So even if I don't become as fit as I like, I don't do well for my IPPT, or even I don't lost that much weight through running, I would still be running.

Of cos, now is the part where I would be saying something like "it's time to start running" or " I should have more discipline and less excuse", but talk it cheap, word is cheap. Thus, I would not say anything now. Only when I start running regularly again will I write about it.

Something I Saw On TV...

2008-09-17T22:02:00.003+08:00

Was channel-hopping just now until I tuned to Discovery Channel Travel and Living, which was showing Anthony Bourdain No Reservation (I really like this show). Guess what? In this episode, he was in Berlin! (I really like that place).

So I watched the whole episode (luckily it just begun) and realized that I missed out quite a bit of stuff (mostly food) on my previous trip to Berlin: how come I didn't try the curry wurst? And why didn't I know about that eatery with all the local German food (oh... that blood sausage looks good... so is the schicken... and there's the ham in gelatin...)? Surely I should had went to Keuzberg, where the Turkish community are, and try those kebabs?

OK, so that's it - first, I'm going to find that episode and watch it again, then I must plan to go to Berlin again.

I must go to Berlin. I must go to Berlin.....

The Day Before.....

2008-09-14T20:06:00.004+08:00

Went blading with one of my blading kakis yesterday. It's been about a couple of months since I bladed and it felt good to be blading again.

Perhaps it's because I stayed indoor for too long and haven't been getting much sun, perhaps I haven't been in such a state of fast, fluid motion for too long, or perhaps it's both. I really don't know, but I really enjoyed myself blading yesterday. Up and down the ECP we bladed, alongside the beach, passing by all the active, happy people engaging their own leisure activities.

We started in the late afternoon until the evening. After kaki had left, I bladed by myself up to the Bedok jetty and stayed for a while to enjoy the sunset (yes, you can see sunset at the jetty, just that it's in the other direction instead at the sea). The evening, the sunset, being outdoor. Things I experienced a lot when I was a student and when I was in the army. Come to think of it, these are things I came to appreciate but seldom have time to enjoy it nowadays because of work.

So, yah, from now on, I will spend more time outdoor and enjoy the sun, the evening, and everything else. Shall lead a more active lifestyle instead of just lab and home. This way, it's more like... me, myself.

This way, I will definitely be happier.

Resumed.....

2008-09-08T19:53:00.004+08:00

Oh no! I hadn't wrote anything for more than a month!

What happened? Had life became so routine that I am too uninspired to write anything?

Well, actually, not really. It's more like I am too drained and low-energy to write anything. Yes, life had became routine, but there's always new challenges at work - from the occasional fire that needs to be fought to the pile-up of backlog that is crawling under my skin and needs to be cleared - there's always something to tackle at work. Never a quiet day..... and oh, my boss took in a honors student, and guess who's mentoring him?

Everyday I start the day fresh and full of thoughts and ideas. Then when I reached the lab, the up-hill climb that is work began and by the end of the day, all I can think of is: "Brain dead. Go home. Stoned."

So that's how I stopped updating the blog for so long. Just can't gather enough energy (or is it motivation?) to put anything down. But surely this can't go on.

Yes, I must refuse to be drown by work. So it's time to resume all the blogging, reading, running, blading, swimming, etc.... in short, time to resume living again, and I shall start by writing this blog.

Let's hope it will last....

I Am Not A Skeptic, But....

2008-07-03T22:22:00.006+08:00

I would really like you guys to read this.

After reading it, don't stop there. Click on the links and surf around the website a bit. You might just learn something like I did.

Word Game.....

2008-06-11T22:17:00.004+08:00

Saw this on a friend's blog and found it quite interesting. Since I had nothing better to write, might as well....

Use the first letter of your name to answer each of the following. They have to be real places, names, and things and you CANNOT use your own name for the boy/girl name.

Your name:
S...(if you know me, you'll know how to spell the rest)

Four words:
Sulfur
Sulfate
Sulfide
Sulfuric

State/country:
Switzerland (ah.... how I want to go there again....)

Boy Name:
Seth

Girl Name:
Sabrina

Occupation:
Sweeper

Something you can wear:
Sandals

Something found in a kitchen:
Saucepan

Something you shout:
Sh*t!

Something you do at school:
Sleep...(what else? Study?)

Name of an animal:
Serpent

Name of a Drink:
Soda (how life will be much less bubbly without it....)

Name a Hoilday:
Sunday ! (If I had it my way, everyday will be Sunday...)

Name a body part:
Spleen

I Need To Write Something, I Need To Write Something...

2008-05-20T22:14:00.002+08:00

Woke up in the morning feeling like today is still a holiday.

But no.... the cold, hard fact is today is a working day, so I had to drag myself out of the bed, go through the usual routine and off I am on a MRT train to work.

As the train approached the workplace, the working mood started to kick in. Ya, I am ready to work through the day ahead. I don't dread going to work. The work is interesting. I get to create things and I get to learn stuff. There is this sense of satisfaction and achievement when a compound is being made; there is also another sense of satisfaction when new knowledge is being acquired, understood and - sometime - mastered. It all feel so real.

Yes, it is real. What I do in my job is real, what I learned from my job is real, what I achieved in my job is real. I do have my own view about what is real, but I am not in the mood to elaborate on it now. Maybe I will devote another entry for that.

Clearing Leave

2008-04-29T22:50:00.003+08:00

My mind is empty, I have no useless thoughts to write about, and I just posted a youtube video a few posts ago.

But having only one post this month just doesn't seem right. So for the sake of just putting something down, I am going to write about the things I wanna do while clearing my leave.

Yes, I am clearing my leave now, expending all 4.5 days of my leave carried forward from last year before they expire on 1st of May. What this means is that for more than a week, I don't need to go to the lab (and face the sometimes-I-just-wanna-scream-at-you Z) . So during this free time, initially I wanted to:

- Read a book. Anyway book. Actually I had some books in pdf version in my laptop, but reading from a screen is different from reading an actual book. I had picked up a couple if titles from the library (ah! visiting the library, something I had wanted to do for a long time. Now I did it, I should do it more often....)

- Kick-start my fitness plan. Battling an ever-expanding waistline, a ballooning weight, plus the need to (at least) pass the IPPT, this is a must-do. There is no try....

- Skate at ECP. Just did it! Met up with some nice ppl from the net, skate for the whole afternoon last Sat. Nice experience. I can really write a post about this, so maybe I will do it after the next session this coming Sat...

- Swim. Yes, I want to swim. I had not swim for ages. I want to dip in a pool of water and move around in it, while my mind is fill with calm.. or simply, nothing.

- Kayaking. (Might take a bit of work.....)

- Finish my 10-years-in-the-making cross stitch project!

- Finish the third part of my Epic!

There's another one about tidying up my room and another about reading up on organic chemistry and spectroscopy (for my work...). There's also one about going shopping and another one about meeting up with friends.

Then suddenly, it just struck me: I only have a week, I can't possibly accomplish all the things I listed above. So what this means is that most likely, some of the stuff above will get left out, and I will feel a bit disappointed about that.

Oh well, that's life. So many things to do, but so little time.....

Better This Way

2008-04-06T20:17:00.002+08:00

I have a confession to make, that is: I make a lot of mistakes.

Whenever I made a mistake (at least most of the time), I apologies, take all responsibilities/punishement, and do all the damage control. In a perfect world, that will be enough (but then again, in a perfect world, I would not be making all these mistakes in the first place). However, since this world is not perfect, it just means that even after all can be done was done, somethings will never be the same again, and some people - especially those that really matters - can never forgive and/or forget. Because of these, I will have regrets. Huge regrets.

But then, life have to go on right? I can't keep harping onto every one of these regrets and impede myself from going forward. So, since I cannot turn back time and undone what had been done, the way I deal with it is to tell myself, "it's better this way".

Yes, it's better this way. I made a mistake and I learned from it. So I got to know a bit more about life, got a bit more wiser, and maybe a bit more mature. I just might become a better person because of it. If I didn't make the mistake, I might never learn.

Of course there might be scars that never heal, things that are broken beyond repair and people who will never forgive and forget, but all I can do is leave it as it is and move on. There is nothing more I can do and the last thing I want is to try too hard to make things like before and end up making a bigger mistake (and this, I learn from my mistakes). So, I will leave things as they are and they will serve as a reminder to never repeat the same mistake again.

Anyway, sometimes if things were to remain like it was before, it might not be a good thing. I mean, sometimes the situation just allows one to be at their worst and get away with it. Or sometimes the situation is just plain hopeless; one might be going nowhere, not achieving and/or not learning anything if things just remains the same and go on meaninglessly. So really, it's better to break something, get out of the situation and move on.

Since the situation is already like this, might as well make some positive out of it. Yes, things might be much better if no mistake were made, but it also might be much worse. Since the mistake had been made, perhaps it just make life more comfortable knowing that things could be worse and that a lesson had been learned to make one a better person. And even if it's the worst situation, then well, things can only get better

So yah, it's better this way.

This Is So Cute......

2008-03-24T21:01:00.003+08:00

I plucked this photo from an article on Yahoo! Singapore. Yes, even dogs know how to pray......

So Unhappy...

2008-03-14T21:03:00.003+08:00

Today marks the end of a far-from-good week at work.

I am so unhappy, and everything can be trace to this great pile-up of reactions that started more than two weeks ago.

I called it a pile-up when I'm running so many reactions in such a short time that I'm lagging behind in everything and things just starts to fall apart.

It's a long story how I even came to this state, but the end-situation is that the backlog of work includes lagging 20-reactions behind in lab notebook recording, at least 5 reactions on hold (some for more than 2 weeks, which is an eternity by lab-time) and, most important of all, the huge amount of glassware laying around inside my fumehood due to the all the uncompleted reactions.

All the above are already making me crawl under my skin. But then, my boss, Z, had to come and comment on how messy my fumehood is and how it reflects one's personality.

Yes, my boss, the one who gave me so much reactions and the one who knows why I am piling up so much stuff in my fumehood at the moment, decided that this week, when my fumehood is so unusually messy, is the perfect time to judge my personality based on my fumehood. If there is anything I hate more about people judging people, it is people wrongly judging people based on unfair situation. This is totally unfair.

Then couple with some other frustrating situation, a rush of blood shot through my head and I decided to let off a bit of steam in a very public way. There wasn't any screaming, shouting and nobody was hurt (physically, at least). It wasn't over-the-top, but it's enough to upset quite a few of the colleagues. So now I am paying the price for it. I deserve it, so it's ok. It's never a good thing to show anger. I should had known better.

Then you all might ask, why don't I confront Z instead? Well, I could. He's not even a quarter as scary as K (my boss in Basel) and I stared back at him before. I'm quite sure I can chew off his head if I really want to. But it serve no purpose. He's the boss anyway, and more importantly, he's knowledgeable and I am ignorance. There is still a lot I can learn from him. There is also a better time and/or a better way to get back at him. There always is.

So anyway, before I get anymore dark and evil, the reactions are coming in slower (partly due to Z now believing that it's better to slow down a bit), and so there'll be some time next week for me to clear the backlog, although it might take a few extra hours at work. But it's fine, as long as I get them off my back, I'm happy.

大侠！

2008-02-21T21:44:00.006+08:00

倩女幽魂——燕赤霞舞剑

以下是歌词：

人间道
道道道道道道
道道道道道道道道道

道可道非常道
天道地道人道剑道
黑道白道黄道赤道
乜道物道道道都道
自己嗰道系非常道
我呸呸呸呸胡说八道
呢度嗰度边度系路哈哈。。。。
花道茶道哈阴道阳道哈
零度密度咸度淡度光度热度雷射角度
鬼哭神号旁门左道狗上瓦坑必然有路
你度佢度豺狼当道唏
我自求我道
我自求我道

想一想，世界何其大，到处都有人在说自己的教，自己说自己对，自己好。

连妖与魔都说自己好。

所以，我决定了：不理会他人说什么，自己觉得对就好；也不会到处说自己对，硬把自己这一套，套在别人身上。

总之，就像燕大侠所唱的

我，自求我道！

大丈夫

2008-02-20T19:57:00.003+08:00

《孟子，滕文公下》第二章：

富贵不能淫，
贫贱不能移，
威武不能屈；
此之谓大丈夫。

（忽然间，毫无缘故，这段名句浮现于脑海中，所以就写在这里，与大家共勉之。）

This Holiday Mood Will Wear Off

2008-02-12T21:32:00.001+08:00

Going back to work after a very long weekend/holiday was not easy.

Especially that the holiday was CNY.

Especially that the lab was still very quiet cos some of the colleagues were still on holiday.

Especially that everyone else in the lab were also in the holiday mood and everything was going at 60% (at the most).

It also didn't help that I only had two reactions to run. Each of them needs to stir for 3 days and I can't proceed until they are done. So most of the time I was stuck at my desk doing experimental write up for the patent.

This is not nice situation. Have to start picking up fast, so that I can get back into the normal working mode soon.

Good thing is, one of the reaction will be done tmrw and I can start churning out analogs. I will also get to play with this machine for optical rotation. It will be a busier day tmrw, hope that it will help really help me wear off the holiday mood.

The Thing I Cooked In Basel

2008-01-19T21:11:00.000+08:00

OK, this bowl of unappetizing pasta (yes, it's pasta, in case you guys can't figure out what it is) was a re-creation of what I used to cooked for myself in when I was in Basel - beside all of my everything-in-oven dishes, of course.

And yes, this is a faithful re-creation. It is not made any better, nor any worse.

A friend of mine once remarked that single guys left alone will only eat thrash. That's kinda true considering that I am cooking up food like this. Well, at least it is edible, and doesn't really taste that bad either. So, coming from someone who doesn't have much cooking skill like me, I think I did ok slapping together something like this.

I bought the ingredient last weekend. Dun really like to complain, but still I wanna say that it's hard to find those big, ripe, attractively red tomatoes I find easily in Basel or across the German border. The mushrooms here are also very small. I really miss those big mushroom. The pesto sauce here are lacking in variety and are expensive. I rather make them myself. Maybe I will do that.....

Luckily, I brought a bottle of mix herbs back from Basel. So sprinkle a bit on the pasta, and the familiar taste was back. There is this saying/theory about taste and smell evoking memory of the past, so it was kinda the case when I was eating this bowl of pasta just now. Oh, my Basel adventure... nice, unique.... bittersweet maybe. Part of my life experience, where I learned thing in and outside the lab. Made me a better person maybe? I hope....

Anyway, it's not very difficult to see that I cooked too much pasta this time. It's one of the few things that always happen. The portion will be just nice for two persons. Best buddy TH almost came close to sampling this creation of mine when he came visit last week, but decided we should eat out instead cos it'll be too much work. Oh well, next time then...

Looking Forward

2008-01-01T12:22:00.000+08:00

Ok, today is the first day of the New Year and so I'm gonna write something about looking ahead toward this coming year. I only had about 4 hours of sleeps and a cup of coffee, so I'm just gonna write whatever comes to my mind.

2008 is a new start and it's always nice to start the year with a clean slate, or a less complicated situation. 2007 had been ...... a mess. There's some discontinuities here and there, then there's also some story arcs and events that I'm not even sure whether there will be any closure. So I will just leave these things from last year behind and move on, whether I like it or not. Better this way I guess.

I am staying put in Singapore and I have a stable job with a decent income. So there's much more stability and more routine in my life this year. This is really a good thing. I can now build on and create things in my life and really achieve something.

What is inevitable is that I will be taking care of the family - nope, I am not talking about starting a new family (more on that later), I am referring to my current family (I don't really distinguish these two actually; they are all family). The time has come for me to take the responsibility of being in charge of family matters and more importantly taking care of my parents. This means more maturity and more sense of responsibility. So I am assuming a new role and developing my character, and it will be the main thing for this year.

I had always said I wanna do my PhD. However it is unlikely that I will make it for this year intake. So what will happen this year towards my aim of postgrad study is that I will learn as much as possible from my work and meanwhile checking out some issues regarding postgrad studies. It's better to be more prepared first then just directly plunging in....

So lastly, let's talk about romance. I am hitting the big 30 in a few years time, so this means I am at this stage in life where everyone around me is telling me that having a stable girlfriend, if not a wife, is a MUST. It's no longer about just wanting a gf, it's about needing one. I am not used to having ppl around me hinting me about getting attached ("you are not getting younger....") or seeing every event/ function I attend as a match-making session ("so do you see anyone you like?") cos I never encounter such things before. Think I better get used to it. Anyway, at this stage I am in, getting attached isn't just about the "feeling", there's the whole massive marriage consideration being thrown into it too. It's just make the whole relationship issue a bit more complex. And a bit more difficult too. I dunno, this is something that's really out of my control. I'm just gonna leave it for the moment.

Ok, that is all I have to say. So here's wishing you guys out there a happy and fruitful year 2008.

Losing Fitness

2007-12-29T14:53:00.000+08:00

Last evening I went for my first run in two months.

All I can say is: WEAK!!!!

Really should make an effort to run more often. Maybe I should put that down somewhere in my resolution for next year....

Something Interesting...

2007-12-23T23:54:00.000+08:00

As a self-diagnosed megalomaniac, occasionally I will visit the website of various overseas universities to satisfy my fantasy of studying abroad.

Yes, I know to some of you out there, I did mention about studying abroad. However, there are two reason that I am staying put in Sg: the EDB bond and, more importantly, family responsibility. (So, yes, Andrew, I know you were not blaming me that time. I dun feel that way at all. Instead, I was feeling pity. For myself, of cos)

So anyway, I was going through a couple of universities in Canada, the first of which being the University of Victoria. What I really like about their graduate admission section is that they have this webpage which list the minimum requirements from other countries. So under Singapore, it reads: upper 2nd class on Bachelor.

So ok, I thought, I don't qualify. Then I noticed, just above the requirements for Singapore, it reads: Sierra Leone - upper 2nd class on Bachelor; just below the requirements for Singapore, it reads: South Africa - upper 2nd class on Bachelor.

Then when I scanned further, I found that other countries that have minimum requirement of 'upper 2nd class on Bachelor' includes: UK, Australia, Uganda and Zimbabwe, just to name a few.

When I popped over to the website for the University of British Columbia, the minimum academic requirements (scroll all the way down) there for overseas degrees are similar to University of Victoria.

So all these led me to 2 possibilities, either 1) an UK degree, a Singapore degree, a Zimbabwe degree, etc are all of the same standard, or 2) they are not the same, which means the University applies different minimum requirement standard to degrees from different countries.

So, to end this post, I could just say I might as well try my luck and apply anyway. However, since this is my blog, I'm gonna end by sprouting the nonsense that if I know about this minimum requirements thing long ago, I would had been better off taking my degree in Sierra Leone or Zimbabwe instead of NUS.

Another Muppet Clip

2007-12-11T22:40:00.000+08:00

The Muppet Show (with Elton John) - Crocodile Rock

Initially, I wanted to write about the messy state of my bench, desk and work. But then I read a few blogs and realized there are quite a few unhappy souls around. So I decided to post this video clip instead.

When I was in Basel, I watched quite a few episodes of The Muppet Show (from season 1 till half of season 3. I d/l all 5 seasons...) and this is one of my favorite scene. I will always play this clip in youtube, usually more then once - I mean, don't you all find this scene funny? There's Elton John in big colorful costumes,with wacky muppets. And where else can you get crocodiles to do a sing-along - and even the crocodiles are cute!

And where else do you find a variety show full of animals, vegetables and various other creatures? I couldn't explain further but I really like the show; it's good, clean, wholesome, fun entertainment that didn't depend on sex or crude and meaningless jokes to sell, which is so unlike most of what is on offer on TV nowadays.

Hence, I guess most important of all, I like this show because it has innocence. In fact, I think I like shows and movies (and maybe songs) from the 60s, 70s, 80s because of the innocence. I love innocence. Cos I lost mine a long time ago and since then, life had been a bit complicated. Things are simpler now though and I'm keeping it that way, trying to simplify it further. But still, I lost my innocence and the world is now so complicated...

Anyway, this post is suppose to cheer ppl up, and dwelling too much about lost innocence will only make this a depressing topic. So that will be for next time. Meanwhile. Enjoy the clip.

Company Annual D'n'D

2007-12-08T00:46:00.000+08:00

Just came back from my first ever company dinner-and-dance.

The company is small, so the scale of the D'n'D was small (only 10 table!). This actually makes the D'n'D more fun as everyone was more involved. What was also nice was to see everyone being so 'on'; the theme was pirates, and a number of people were really dressed up for the occassion (even people in management level). Even big boss (yes, he dressed up a bit) gave his speech according to the theme (e.g."we set out hunting for treasures such as CSP and SPoCC....").

So yah, I took part in one of the games (nothing more then poking balloon) and got a voucher ($5 Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf) for that; had some 'newbie luck' and won another voucher ($50 Taka) in the lucky draw. There's also another $50 Taka vocher in the door gift. So it's been quite a voucher-ful night for me.

Oh, and there was the dance before the lucky draw. Almost everyone got down to the dance floor and let their hair loose. It's really like prom. Then some funny thoughts went through my mind (I wonder how she looks like when she dances....maybe this would be what happened if she's here now dancing to this song....), but oh well, it's not the time for those, so I quickly brushed them aside and enjoyed the night.

So now I am back at home, ready to go to bed. Tomorrow will just be another Saturday and most likely I will be back in the lab, doing some final preparation for my presentation next week.

It's back to the grind.

My Best Buddy's Wedding

2007-12-03T19:43:00.000+08:00

Last Sunday was the customary of best buddy TH and his wife Veron. I was one of TH 'brother', so I kinda helped out in the whole thing - from fetching the bride in the morning to the dinner in the evening. It was a bit tiring (considering I only had a total of about ~3 hours of sleep the night before) but it was a very happy and joyous occasion.

TH has always been a good example of down-to-earth living (something I look up to him to); him and Veron is a good example of a nice loving couple. One can only expect marital bliss from them.

Of course, from the whole event I took down some mental notes for my own wedding in the future, and also to share with my other frens who will be tying the knot. Maybe I will post it up here next time.

What If......

2007-11-29T20:20:00.000+08:00

Here's the scenario: what if I really studied hard when I was in school?

Let's roll the years all the way back till pri sch (since my parents were the one who chose the sch and I couldn't have much say in it anyway). Let's say I paid attention in class and studied hard from the pre-pri onwards. Most likely I will get very good grades and so when streaming comes, I would end up in EM1.

Then, let's say I did very well in PSLE and received a very good result, say, 260 onwards. Then I get to choose to go to some of the top sec sch. Since my pri sch is a Chinese sch where most top students would end up in one of the top Chinese sec schs, maybe that's where I would end up.

Assuming that raging hormones didn't get the better of me and I continued to work hard, I would most likely end up with a very good 'O' level grades. Not the best, but still a single-digit score for L1R5 (reasonable standard of the sch). With affiliation, ECA, etc, I would be able to enter into on of the top 5 JCs (yes, anywhere else will be unthinkable).

While in JC, let's say hormones continue to not be a problem. So maybe I would do jus enough to get the customary distinctions in all subjects for 'A' level. Not so sure about 'S' papers (or whether I am taking them at all), but scholarship was definitely out of reach (yes, I know this is just a scenario, but still there are limits...).

So with my 'A' level result, entrance to University is not a problem. Let's say I stayed and studied locally. That will means most likely I would go to NUS. Maybe I would take up Chemistry anyway. Or maybe I would end up in Chem Engg. Or maybe Meidicine. Whatever I end up studying, I would get good results and perhaps I would up doing a direct PhD.

Then what next?

I would graduate. With my good academic result I would had ensure I got a nice and stable job. I would work for the next 20, 30, 40 years, having achievements here and there. But end of the day, I would still be working, still be another face in the crowd and still be an ordinary guy.

Not much difference from what I am now.

So in this case, I guess I had more fun doing what I did when I was in sch.

Something Cheerful...

2007-11-20T19:44:00.000+08:00

The Muppet Show - Temptation

Didn't have a good day at work today. Rather deflated, defeated. In fact, things weren't so nice recently. Being making lotsa mistakes. Ridiculously lots. Ridiculous mistakes too, some of them.

So, I need something to cheer me up. The Muppet Show always help. Here's one of my favourite clips from the show. There's something cute and funny about 4 frogs singing the beat (or is it rhythm? Whatever....) and also about the hens doing the backup. And there's Miss Piggy doing what she always does, which is always funny.

So yah, I feel a bit better. As for you guys, Enjoy.

Finally...

2007-11-18T20:25:00.000+08:00

Yes, I had finally finished writing the second part of the trilogy. I had planned to make a mound, but ended up creating a mountain. I initially wanted it to be about 10 chapters long, but as you all can see, it's actually almost 3 times as long as the 1st part and is simply (even by my standard) too long, too draggy, too boring.

So for the third part, I'm gonna post it only after I had totally completed it, editing and all. Hopefully this will prevent it from spiraling out of control and getting too long like this second part, where lack of editing (I was posting and writing at the same time) was most likely the main reason for it's length.

As a result, it's gonna take quite sometime before the third part comes out, but you guys need a break from it anyway. Meanwhile, I'm just gonna fill the space by posting the usual ranting about my daily life and some useless inspirational/positive thoughts I pluck out of thin air. Maybe I will also be a hopeless romantic once in a while and slip in a few sentimental postings here and there, and even do those very "blog" kind of yes-I-am-writing-to-you-in-this-blog-but-your-name-is-not-mentioned posting.

Oh ya, most of all, there will be quite a number of music video clips from youtube. Here's one of them. Enjoy.

The Muppet Show - Yes We Have No Bananas

怨恨三部曲之找不回的灯笼：第十七章

2007-11-16T21:40:00.001+08:00

“嘿，看吧，到最后还是要我来解决，你们也太烂了。” ‘三鼠侠’的第三成员，烈火男孩得意地说道。

“哼，你还好意思讲。你为什么不早来？刚才我放暗号的时候，全班都到了，只有你。”除妖男孩不服气地应道。

“我在拍戏吗！不要忘记，我现在是小明星ok？你们是花生米。我能来已经很好咯。” 烈火男孩反驳道。

“什么花生米啦？你拍戏就了不起啊？” 除妖男孩开始有点恼怒。

“喂，我跟你们不一样ok？我有‘前途’，将来会很有作为。” 烈火男孩从他的背包拿出了一个闪闪发光的水晶球。一段烈火男孩拿奖的影像正在水晶球里显现着。

“又这么样？我也有‘意义’。有了‘意义’，我的生命从此也不一样了。” 除妖男孩那起手中的书本挥了挥。那正是他跑回课室所取的书本。

“你们不要吵了可以吗？现在要这么办？”足球男孩依然扶着除妖男孩，不耐烦地道。

“当然是送我去医院啦！” 除妖男孩道。

“哪一间？” 足球男孩问道。

“国大医院啦！” 除妖男孩回应道。

话才刚说完，忽然一阵爆炸声从校舍传了出来。包括善良的男孩在内的四人转头一看，发现此时大中华巨大壮观的校舍已变成一片火海。

“看啦，为了一个笼，闹到这个样子。” 除妖男孩转过头来对善良的男孩说道。

“你也是的，烧他的灯笼作什么？” 足球男孩问道。

“我看不顺眼他那样开心吗。一个灯笼而已开心到那样，就烧他灯笼开心开心咯。” 除妖男孩答道。

“那个灯笼有特别意义是不是？”烈火男孩接着问道。

“唉呀，一个普通的灯笼而已，到处都有，有什么特别意义？” 除妖男孩应道，然后又接着说：“有特别意义更好，这样才更爽。”

“对！” 烈火男孩听后，大笑起来。

“好了，不要讲了，我们快点去医院吧。” 足球男孩说道。

“Ok”除妖男孩点了点头，开始动身。临走前，他看着善良的男孩：“你身上的尸毒不是很多，休息一下自然会散掉的。我们出去时候，叫爱晨和杜格拉斯开车进来载你。一个普通的灯笼而已，你回家冲凉睡觉以后，就当作什么事情都没发生过啦。” 说完，除妖男孩便在另两人的扶持下，走出了校门。

善良的男孩只是呆呆的躺在地上。他隐约听到有车朝他方向开进来，可是他不作任何反应。因为现在他的脑海里闪现一句话，占据了他整个思路：

“放眼天下，处处尽无良！”

---完---

怨恨三部曲之找不回的灯笼：第十七章

2007-11-16T21:40:00.000+08:00

“嘿，看吧，到最后还是要我来解决，你们也太烂了。” ‘三鼠侠’的第三成员，烈火男孩得意地说道。

“哼，你还好意思讲。你为什么不早来？刚才我放暗号的时候，全班都到了，只有你。”除妖男孩不服气地应道。

“我在拍戏吗！不要忘记，我现在是小明星ok？你们是花生米。我能来已经很好咯。” 烈火男孩反驳道。

“什么花生米啦？你拍戏就了不起啊？” 除妖男孩开始有点恼怒。

“又这么样？我也有‘意义’。有了‘意义’，我的生命从此也不一样了。” 除妖男孩那起手中的书本挥了挥。那正是他跑回课室所取的书本。

“你们不要吵了可以吗？现在要这么办？”足球男孩依然扶着除妖男孩，不耐烦地道。

“当然是送我去医院啦！” 除妖男孩道。

“哪一间？” 足球男孩问道。

“国大医院啦！” 除妖男孩回应道。

话才刚说完，忽然一阵爆炸声从校舍传了出来。包括善良的男孩在内的四人转头一看，发现此时大中华巨大壮观的校舍已变成一片火海。

“看啦，为了一个笼，闹到这个样子。” 除妖男孩转过头来对善良的男孩说道。

“你也是的，烧他的灯笼作什么？” 足球男孩问道。

“我看不顺眼他那样开心吗。一个灯笼而已开心到那样，就烧他灯笼开心开心咯。” 除妖男孩答道。

“那个灯笼有特别意义是不是？”烈火男孩接着问道。

“唉呀，一个普通的灯笼而已，到处都有，有什么特别意义？” 除妖男孩应道，然后又接着说：“有特别意义更好，这样才更爽。”

“对！” 烈火男孩听后，大笑起来。

“好了，不要讲了，我们快点去医院吧。” 足球男孩说道。

善良的男孩只是呆呆的躺在地上。他隐约听到有车朝他方向开进来，可是他不作任何反应。因为现在他的脑海里闪现一句话，占据了他整个思路：

“放眼天下，处处尽无良！”

---完---

怨恨三部曲之找不回的灯笼：第十六章

2007-11-14T22:13:00.000+08:00

火势迅速地在鱼群中从内朝外地蔓延开来。同时，善良的男孩用他手中的火刀杀出重围，直朝僵尸鱼后吴阿姨而去！

善良的男孩火刀杀过之处，无不留下一条快速向外蔓延的火路。眼看善良的男孩杀气腾腾又带火势而来，吴阿姨惊慌不已。她一边迟钝地将她巨大臃肿的身躯往后移。她也同时生出了更多僵尸鱼来阻挡，但是她不知道，如此一来，只会使火势更快速地延伸到她身上；一时之间，火势便依随她身旁的新生僵尸鱼烧到她的面前！

吴阿姨害怕地大叫一声；就在这时，她注意到一个箭步影子从烈火中跳了出来。她抬头一看，原来善良的男孩！这时善良的男孩已跳的半空高，火刀高举过头；接着他降落之际，“喝”的一声，将火刀顺势朝吴阿姨的头直劈而下！

被劈过之处留下了一条火痕；很快地，吴阿姨全身着火。在吴阿姨疯狂嘶喊之间，她慢慢地被火熔化；同时她身上的油脂也开始外漏。

火势随着油脂扩散开来。善良的男孩转头一看，惊觉广场此时已变成一片火海。由僵尸鱼群为燃料的火焰已烧至二楼，往化学实验室蔓延而去；油脂也同时带着火势流向食堂。

善良的男孩不二想地逃离广场，往操场跑去。一到操场，他便看到足球男孩正扶着除妖男孩走向大门，于是立刻朝他们杀过去。可是，跑到一半，忽然一个神秘黑影从善良的男孩身后出现，然后喊了一声“Sliding tackle!”，便重重地把善良的男孩给绊倒！

从招式和声音，善良的男孩已知神秘黑影是谁。他马上站起，正想确定神秘黑影的位置时，足球男孩从他后面一声“老鹰射门！”，踢出了一个状似足球的气劲，不偏不倚地打中他的背门！

善良的男孩痛得“啊”的一声之际，又听得神秘黑影一声“老虎射门！”，接着一股比足球男孩‘老鹰射门’更霸道的足球气劲便朝善良的男孩飞来，正中他的胸前，使他顿时倒地！就这样，每当他站起来，神秘黑影就立刻出招，把他击倒在地！

“老虎射门！”

“Sliding tackle!”

“老虎射门！”

“Sliding tackle!”

善良的男孩被击倒了七，八次。每一次他都尝试反抗，可是每一次都被神秘黑影从不明的方向攻击。每被击倒一次，他的力量就减少一次。最后，他完全精疲力尽，意志力耗尽，脚也因被连续绊倒而严重扭伤，无法站起。这时，神秘黑影，除妖男孩和足球男孩走到了善良的男孩面前。善良的男孩终于看到神秘黑影的面目，果然如他所料。。。

怨恨三部曲之找不回的灯笼：第十五章

2007-11-12T22:02:00.000+08:00

“马。。。我要马。。。”吴阿姨毫无生气地说着。说话时，许多僵尸鱼不断从八爪之间飞了出来，和其它的僵尸鱼组织了起来，开始只攻击男生，并把他们一个个拖向吴阿姨。

“快点拿过来。。。” 听到僵尸鱼后的命令，僵尸鱼群马上更积极地加快速度把所有擒到的男生们拖向吴阿姨。被拖的男生们恐慌地拼命挣扎，可是却无法挣脱；男生一被拖到面前，吴阿姨立刻伸出她的爪把男生一把抓住，塞进她的八爪之间！

僵尸鱼不断飞出，不断地把男生拖来；吴阿姨不断抓住男生，不断地把男生塞进。一时间，吴阿姨八爪都是男生，同时将两，三个一同塞进！

男生越来越多，吴阿姨无法一时全抓住。这时她对僵尸鱼命令道：“马太多。。。全部插进来。。。”只见僵尸鱼拖着男生们，直接把他们塞进。这一来，同时有五，六个男生被塞进，只听得吴阿姨叫道：“啊！好爽！”

善良的男孩和除妖男孩这时全心忙于对付来袭的僵尸鱼。右脚受伤的除妖男孩应付的有点吃力。突然，他灵机一动，一边指着善良的男孩，一边对吴阿姨大声喊道：“最好的马在这里！”

吴阿姨听到除妖男孩的话后，立刻转头往除妖男孩方向望去。看到除妖男孩指着善良的男孩，她立刻把注意力投向善良的男孩，特别是他握住的那把刀。

“能拿刀的就是最好的马！” 除妖男孩又喊道。他知道僵尸鱼后的弱点是很容易受骗，特别是现在这僵尸鱼后是由吴阿姨变成的。

吴阿姨听后，马上指向善良的男孩，对僵尸鱼群道：“我要好马。。。”鱼群听后，尽数冲向善良的男孩，把他重重的包围起来！

除妖男孩和其余的生还者趁这个机会逃跑。但是，除妖男孩因为右脚的毒，此时已经是寸步难行。就在其他的生还者都已逃走，只剩下他一人在挣扎移动时，一个神秘黑影在他的面前出现。

“你来了。。。” 除妖男孩话还没说完，神秘黑影便道：“快走！”然后一把抓住除妖男孩的手臂，把他背了起来便逃离广场。

镜头一转，善良的男孩这时如置身于一个大漩涡中央。尽管他不断的大劈大砍，还是被无数的僵尸鱼包围着。已被几只僵尸鱼咬到的他，心中知道他撑不了多久。很快地，他就会被鱼群淹没。

心爱灯笼被烧，又被陷害置身于僵尸鱼群中，而且是吴阿姨所生出及号令的鱼群；善良的男孩想到这里，一股不甘愿的愤怒涌上心头，使他开始更疯狂地向鱼群劈砍！劈砍之间，刀一时擦过地面，产生了火花。火花落在僵尸鱼身上时，僵尸鱼突然着火燃烧起来！

善良的男孩见状，恍然大悟；原来僵尸鱼易燃，火可以克制僵尸鱼！于是善良的男孩马上用刀在地上迅速地摩擦了一圈；所产生的火花立刻使围在他身边的僵尸鱼全部燃烧起来！而沾满鱼血，鱼油的刀，也因摩擦火花而着了火！

怨恨三部曲之找不回的灯笼：第十四章

2007-11-01T23:04:00.001+08:00

回看广场，因为僵尸鱼数目暴增，又没有救兵保护，越来越多同学被僵尸鱼咬得倒地不起。吴阿姨骑着她对她忠心不二的驴子，从三楼走廊往下看，却对眼前的场景不为所动。

“还好我聪敏，跑到楼上来。” 吴阿姨对自己说道。才刚说完，一条僵尸鱼突然飞在吴阿姨的面前。吴阿姨吓了一跳；但还好她的驴反应快，立刻抬起两只前蹄然后往僵尸鱼狠狠一踩，把僵尸鱼塔扁。在这么一个大动作下，一张照片从吴阿姨口袋中掉了出来。在照片里，吴阿姨骑着一只黑马，非常快乐得样子。

驴子看了照片后，不敢相信是真的。他回头看着骑他的吴阿姨。吴阿姨看到驴子惊讶的表情，只是不以为然地说道：“是呀。他是我最近在家楼下认识的。你不在时，我有跟他出去过几次。那时跟你讲去朋友的家就是去他的家咯。”

驴子这时眼带愤怒，吴阿姨看了，不耐烦地接着道：“你作什么啦你？看到更好的，当然是选更好得咯。你是一头驴，人家是一匹马，我当然选人家啦。如果以后碰到更好的马，就选那批更好的马咯。”

驴子听后，非常的生气，可是吴阿姨还是继续说下去：“我本来暂时还不想跟你讲的，因为你还蛮好的，不过现在你知道了，就没办法咯。还是你以后条件更好了在来找我咯。”

吴阿姨这一番话让驴子气疯了。他看着楼下的鱼群，突然心生一念，于是马上倒退。

“喂，你要作什么？” 吴阿姨开始有点害怕。话才刚说完，驴子便全速冲向走廊矮墙，然后一跃而起，越过了矮墙。在吴阿姨的尖叫声中，驴子连同吴阿姨从三楼往广场跳了下去！

眨眼间，吴阿姨已猛落入满是僵尸鱼卵的八爪鱼怪尸体内。

就在这时，趁混乱逃跑的除妖男孩从课室跑回到了广场。善良的男孩则紧追在后。除妖男孩转头看善良的男孩离他多远时，一时分心让一条僵尸鱼咬到了他的右脚。尽管他立刻将那条僵尸鱼拔掉，但尸毒已侵入，使他整条右脚顿时肿起来，变得行动困难。

善良的男孩这时一边劈砍来袭的僵尸鱼，一边向寸步难行的除妖男孩逼近。就当善良的男孩就要追上除妖男孩时，在他们二人身旁的八爪鱼怪尸体突然发出一阵怪声。转头一看，八爪鱼怪尸体此时正跌跌撞撞，慢慢地站了起来；接着，它的头部突然猛地爆开！血肉横飞的同时，吴阿姨的上半身从八爪鱼怪尸体冒出，与八爪鱼怪的下半身连接，取代了八爪鱼怪的头。吴阿姨双眼无神，全身布满鱼鳞，手臂侧边还长出了鱼鳍。除妖男孩一看，立刻知道是怎么一回事：僵尸鱼卵加上八爪鱼怪的血，使吴阿姨身体产生变化，变成了僵尸鱼后！

怨恨三部曲之找不回的灯笼：第十三章

2007-10-30T21:03:00.000+08:00

另一边厢，轻功较了得的同学个个使出他们的看家本领来躲避僵尸鱼的攻击，在混乱的人群中逃出一条生路。其中，小马车以他以往一听铃声就第一个跑出课室的速度，再加上他刁钻的‘左右左右’步法，领先穿梭于人群，朝后院跑去。‘七匹狼’的骨皮则以他独家的‘扭与转’步法尾随在后。

途中，小马车经过倒在地上滚来滚去，企图甩掉他身上的一群僵尸鱼的大熊林。小马车不禁驻足对大熊林说道；“看啦，活该啦。说我嚣张。我站起来你也讲我嚣张，我坐下来你也讲我嚣张。到底谁比较嚣张？我看最嚣张的还是你。活该你被咬。”

“不要在那边讲话了，快跑啦！”此时，‘七匹狼’的另一成员永枣，使用他的‘月亮神功’跟上了小马车和骨皮，看到小马车停在哪儿挡路，急忙地喊道。

小马车听后，马上又开步往后院去，骨皮和永枣紧跟在后。不稍片刻三人便来到了后院，及时赶上一辆正要开走的卡车。三人一跃，跳上了卡车。随之，卡车便全速前进，离开了校园。

这时，火神和救兵赶致广场，与鱼群展开大战。火神器在大青蛙上，一面指令着救兵，一边掩护同学离开广场。就在这个时候，他看见美丽的黄燕正被僵尸鱼包围，于是不多想便上前营救。一声令下，大青蛙一跃，落在美丽的黄燕与僵尸鱼之间。接着大青蛙快舌一伸，‘啪，啪，啪’几声，僵尸鱼尽数被大青蛙吞下。

“来，快上来。”火神伸出了手。美丽的黄燕立即抓住了火神的手，火神用力一拉，便把美丽的黄燕拉上了大青蛙。

拉上了大青蛙后，火神还是握住美丽的黄燕的手。此时他们四眼相对，火神温柔地对美丽的黄燕说道：“你没事吧？” 美丽的黄燕羞涩地点了点头。火神接着道：“逃出了这里后，你愿不愿意。。。”

话说到这里，大青蛙突然大吼一声，开始猛力摇摆。原来，僵尸鱼数目太多，大青蛙不敌，还被一批僵尸鱼咬中了双眼要害！

火神见状，马上拉着美丽的黄燕的手，和她一同从大青蛙上跳了下来。此时，他才看到僵尸鱼在受害者身上产卵，而同时又有无数的新生僵尸鱼从其他的受害者身上爆体而出。僵尸的数目越来越多，罗汉鱼精，龙虾精和八爪鱼怪也始终不敌。转眼间，僵尸鱼咬满了它们与大青蛙全身。它们一一倒下，血大量的从它们的身上流出。

火神急忙拉着美丽的黄燕，转身往后院逃去。转身之际，他看到‘三花才女’跑在他之前。火神不假思索地带着美丽的黄燕越过了她们。他这么一越，使得‘三花才女’的爱零蛋为了躲避而不慎扭到了脚。爱零蛋跌倒在地，‘三花才女’另二人也驻足欲相助。眼见一批僵尸鱼就要扑下，忽然一个黑影从‘三花才女’身旁冒出，举起了自动步枪。接着‘砰，砰，砰’一连串枪声后，僵尸鱼尽数被射下。。。。