Apple's newborn

iPhone is officially out (in the States)!!!!!!!!!!!! I wonder when will they reach the Singapore shore... mmmm... sighting from the web report it is very reasonably priced, even not as expensive as Nokia N95! I'm not a big fan of touch-screen products, however it does look quite appealing... isn't it?


The BEST THING I love about iPhone has to be... (read below)

Quoted from Apple website:

"iPhone features a rich HTML email client and Safari — the most advanced web browser ever on a portable device — which automatically syncs bookmarks from your PC or Mac. Safari also includes built-in Google and Yahoo! search. iPhone is fully multi-tasking, so you can read a web page while downloading your email in the background over Wi-Fi or EDGE."

Exhausting... me

My K550i baby is hospitalized and will only be discharged on Monday.

Great Singapore Sale is coming to an end.. well a couple of weeks to go. Today will begin our last weekend before the GST in Singapore rises from 5% to 7%. All the Singaporeans must be doing the mad shopping. So today after work, I hooked up with my sister and we went ransacking through the stores with a huge "SALE" sign plastered on their window display. I got a dress, so did she. It was a promotion, buy 1st get the 2nd at 50%. Quite worthy! But I also realised my taste in clothes have been quite identical, this dress is similar to a top I got the last time at Pull & Bear!

Work.

2 weeks have since passed, like blink of the eyes. I couldn't remember much, however I recall my tiring nights with lacking sleep. I remember my phone was sick and it mattered more. I was given a few assignments and they sure seemed tough to me as this job is still relatively new to me. I was talking to Chris, a friend... about it - about my thoughts about moving into a niche market (UI design) or shall I remain with my web/online design-marketing-communications. This is a major decision, because if I do move into a new specialized area, I probably wouldn't have an easier chance to go back to what I was doing before anymore.

He's sick

Update: My man seems to be sick:( I guess I'm just unlucky this quarter of the year! 4 days after I bought the phone, I realised the "4" button is quite annoying. Sometimes I have to really exert my full body pressure on it to get the letter out... sometimes it just didn't want to come out! I hate it. 3 persons tried ringing me but couldn't get through though my "reception bars" are not at all lacking! I brought it to Sony Ericsson Centre (which I totally detest their slow and very average service) and was told I should bring it back to the shop. However iPosh told me they offer a non-exchange policy:( They did mention non-refundable but nothing was said about goods being sold are not exchangeable. Anyway, it really turned me off. iPosh has relatively good service when you get your phone, however considering that goods sold should never have anything to do with them anymore isn't very reasonable, especially when it's like less than a week old! Sigh, what can I do? Complain? Or perhaps wiser to just send it to the damned service centre.

I found my man, and he's white ;)

Should I also add that his blue eyes sparkle when he's turned on! Before you think too far off, my man is my phone. He's a white K550i (Sony Ercisson). Keypad lit up in blue when in use :) I suppose you like my above description ;) Ok, here's how it looks like.

Having searched high & low for months, done research and price surveying... it only came to me yesterday that "Yes, I think he's the one." A lot of times while I'm deciding on the phone, I chanced upon similiarities between changing phones and changing boyfriends.

He's my 4th man. K550i. The 1st is a 2nd hand (waterbottle lookalike) Nokia 6110 if I remember right. I saved and saved, and managed to get it at about S$150. It was one of the best at that time, and I was extremely pleased. Not long after, I refurnished it. The front houses a transparent orange to green gradient cover. When it rang, it totally resembled a "chow ah lian" phone in that 'era'. The whole phone lit up with running lits and was an incredibly loud toy!

It later died, like most phones, it started off with weakening battery. Even a 2nd battery didn't work. My 2nd man, Samsung Egeo, came into view. Still one of my favourites, he's a LADIES' man -- a ladies phone :) It not only remembers your menstrual cycle, it can also calculates calories burnt. Problems arised since I lost his antenna, and I never seem to get my SMS-es. His time was then up... Today he still somehow works (a good backup or holiday phone) though he's quite out of trend. No color, pixels, camera doesn't exist...

The 3rd man, Sharp GX 15, is a pretty long lasting one. He has been with me 3 years and I wouldn't have changed should he work fine. But in recent months, he has deteriorated from bad to worse and now worse to worst. A full battery doesn't even last half a day! Got him in London, and since there's no Sharp mobile locally, I reckon I should rather invest the money than spending it to import the battery from Japan :(

So this is how my 4th man came about...

So you see, I wouldn't change my phone/man until something serious or threatening has occured. My best mate recently lost her mobile and guess what? She bought exactly the same model back. I deduce how sentimental she is and probably the new beau she is looking for is very so often somehow identical to the previous one. Another guy friend changes his mobile every so often. However, him being a man, I guess it's not applicable to take women as phones. Guys should be more IT savvy and knowledgeable about new gadgets, isn't it!

There are those holding on to the same phone for years. Perhaps they are reluctant to accept changes, or could be one of the contented people around... or are they just loyal? Another mate of mine upgrades her mobile plan to get a new phone but happily uses the old one concurrently. While they can be devoted lover, they might still be keeping their options open?? New one are welcome ;) For those whose phone is one of the latest and dying for the next trendy one, STOP BEING GREEDY!

Enough of my analysis - changing phones vs dating men...

My purchase @ iPosh was such a pleasant experience. A tiny cosy shop with ultra-personal service. It turned out they sold the last white K550i before I arrived (I did email to ask!!). I didn't fancy the black, so to make a customer happy, the boss (I think he is) had to pick one up from another location. Reasonable price, excellent service (with no air), I definitely recommend it! Update: BTW, please read about my complaint about iPosh thereafter, I'm very unhappy with their no exchange policy, when they sold me a faulty equipment/phone.

Not prepared

As I am blogging, the girls are probably still downing beers and pizza at Wala Wala. It's my 4th night out and another booze. I reckon I'll be dead if I do it a few more times. Barely a week, 4 days consumption of alcohol... now my liver needs a rest. Good thing is I never gotten drunk on any occasion, and that means I didn't exceed my limit;) Today, after a 0.5L Erdinger... I felt extremely sleepy, might also be due to my 5-6 hours of sleep.

1st Day at Work

Feeling stressed about it. It's been a while since I put myself into a spot... whether to commit or not! I start to dread, to fear, to be afraid, to be scared... to be indecisive. This new job is challenging and way too, a lot of rollercoaster rides ahead. Am I prepared, can I do it? I can't give an answer. To be totally brutally honest, I haven't gotten myself into the mood yet. Or should I say I'm not yet passionate about it. I'm probably straining myself a little too much than I can handle, afterall it's only the first day and I don't have to prove anything. I'm swayed by a temptation, and it's hard to resist.

3 parties & a booze in less than a week

Isn't it crazy... Well for a person like me, yes, CRAZY. The most I have done was a couple of times a month, but now it all happens in a week. I couldn't turn them down since friends came back from abroad... and well of course, to catch up with other long-time-no-see friends... plus I had a week free before the start of the new job. Gay clubs, we went. It was my virgin visit, and we went to two of them... can't say I totally enjoy or hate it. These 'men' are all so CUTE, yes. But they're interested in what I'm interested in too - MEN. Only difference is probably they're looking for homosexual ones:)

Tomorrow

620am. See the dark morning sky, force my butt out of the bed, do a speedy shower and preparation and an hour journey to work. God!

Ogre bebe are like luscious melons

Shrek 3.

Having watched Shrek 1 & 2 over the weekend, it was a breeze to do 3. The story remains in my head and it was much easier to follow than I did for POC. 3 sees Shrek assisting in the taking/handing over of the kingdom after the frog King died. Poor frog has such a hard time dying... Prince Charming, as usual, has nothing good up his sleeves since his mum, the evil fairy godmother, has since vanished into bubbles. It is a family movie, and a very entertaining one for young kids, especially during the June school holidays!

Do stay on for the credits at the end of the movie, those babies are so loveable. Hey, even if they're ogres!

My rating: 3.5/5 for the cute ogre babies and laughter

Mambo frill & thrill

$22 cab fare. It sometimes sucks to live faraway from town you know, but I still prefer the peace and quiet outside it. No chaos.
8 hours sleep thereafter with my contact lens. God, I even forgot about these, even though I wasn't anything near drunk!
At least 5 beautiful ladies, 2 gays, 3 boys. I like the gay boys, they take such good care of us :))))
Teochew porridge supper :D~
TOTALLY WORTH IT.

2 drunkards came up to me. They are actually friends but took turns since one of them failed to get my number, handed me a card which I deliberately dropped it somewhere. Touchers, I didn't like them AT ALL! And they went on to terrorize the ladies in our group!! ARGgghhhhhhhhh... idiots.

It's not the first time I met men in a club but it is the first that I get so many of them the same night, it is hard to have fun with these "things" around. It doesn't make ME feel good when a stranger comes up and asks for my number. I take it as a hint that either this man is desperate for a date or for sex. And not surprisingly, the most beautiful thing said to me last night actually came from a gay... Such a sweetie! He even helped me to get away from the idiot!

It is already Wednesday!

It's mid-week and I'm still feeling exhausted from nothing. Done nothing, yet feeling physically bedridden. I'm persuading myself to step out of the door, however I make it no further than my confined neighbourhood. Somehow I'm not a busy city life person. I dread going to town unless it is for some errands I have to run.

I lost a friend, not to death, but to how much this friendship has meant to me but seemingly not as much to him. I haven't felt better, probably because speaking to him, I am always wrong, I must always pretend to be strong and put up a bravefront... I am always the one who should change or change my perspective. I'm mentally tired. Even at the brink of death, he did not even ask a word of concern and I had to be strong. Not cry, not scared, not even feeling a little fragile. I'm a woman and I can't think of myself as a rock.

Two parties this week before I should start afresh at a new company. I am looking forward to the challenge, the only thing is I am still a little unprepared. Am I ready yet? I feel I must prove myself and it is giving me some pressure... But at 25, I have never felt more confident than before and it is always a good thing!

After a couple of interviews I have attended, let me share with you the hardest Q I was asked... It left me speechless for some seconds... "If you have been taking contract/freelance/short-termed work for the past few years, how can you convince us that you'll be able to commit for a long-termed position?" Let me know your answers :))

Do I really have commitment phobia???

Goodbye@IDA

Another time to say Goodbye... I'm almost immune to the sadness that it always come with. Having said lots of Goodbye in the last couple of years: bye Singapore, bye London, bye Germany, bye XXX companies, bye Bear, bye Erik, bye Joy, bye Angela, bye Syndy... Lots of goodbye(s) you can see. And it is hardly going to stop I guess, there are so many possibilities, friends leaving, changes...

Finally, after this "Goodbye", I do want to stay on to a job I enjoy... and look at my long-termed plan. Time to start thinking about what and where I see myself in years to come. Syndy asked me a question which she has been bugged with: Where do I see myself in 10 years' time?? My Answer: All over the world; with a good job; having beach holidays with my kids; found the one that I love and will always love. Haa... very ideal. This morning, I came up with a slight alteration, I want to live out in the nature/out of the city (so definitely not in SG) and do my own B&B (bed and breakfast), I think that's a good plan for 20 years or more later! Ohh... how about my plan to start a cake cafe... geezz... I need to re-think and plan..

Not going to get too far with the fantasy again... Let me go on about my Goodbye@IDA. First and foremost, I have to bid farewell to Suntec, here's a few nice pictures I took - all taken with my dying Sharp GX15, BTW it's only a VGA camera. I love this camera phone to death, it takes absolutely stunning colors, but unfortunately no Sharp phones in Singapore. WHY??

We also had a mini farewell lunch which was Do-it-yourself (DIY) Popiah! For those unfamiliar with Singaporean/local food, check out the pictures below. You get a platter of selection of ingredients from shredded egg, prawns, lettuce, the popiah filling, sweet sauce to chili; place what you want on your wrap, before you roll it up. I swear it was really good, as good as the ones you get in the hawker. I ate 3 yesterday!


Not forgetting the kind colleagues whom have pooled together to get me a very posh namecard case from The Metropolitan Museum of Art New York. Someone even knew I like PINK, gosh, very observant! Here's how it looks like :)))

Jeremy, a co-worker, organised an evening jog to the Marina Bay area on the same day. I decided to join the crowd, which was 6 other guys plus me. 2 bosses, 4 other colleagues. Ha, it was the first and last time I do this kind of group exercise, but it was good. Strange, I didn't feel really hungry after that, only that my knees are crackin'!

Thank you guys... I definitely will miss you all. Especially after a team bonding session, I definitely know a lot of them better.

Such a bird! Ostrich bird!

The worst interviewer ever ever ever ever ever!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 鸟人！

I was so pissed off at the end of the interview I was pretty sure this guy and me are NOT going to work together. He's such a turtle! Why turtle??? To hide his head back in his shell!

He looks 20, yet his hair said he's 40! I'm not going to put him down physically, it's his attitude that turns me off. He spoke like a robot, and looked at his laptop monitor 99.9% of the time. The only time he looked up at me was when he had to send me to the door! Jesus, he asked me Qs while he was looking at his laptop (for God's sake, is he watching some porn or what's so nice about talking to a non-living thing??). I had to answer and felt like an idiot, talking to the table or something. I was so glad it ended, because he began to ask some really redundant and stupid Qs, I believe he has no interviewing experience at all. I wonder why such a big organization (a big Finnish firm) would allocate such an important hiring/recruitment process to such a low ranking person in the Co.? He's hiring for his replacement so this person will be under him, thank God, thank God, I'm not going to be the one.

Too many choices isn't a good choice

I fear that I don't have a choice a lot of the time... and I prayed that I will now get many choices and be able to pick the best out of them all. And...

It is true now I do have a choice. Unlike the previous time, I was forced under circumstances to pick the only choice, or well the wiser choice. My 11 job applications turned out well indeed; >50% calls rate, however only 25% of the 11 is working out. And of cos, I don't have that many to choose from.

I think I have made a decision... and this is going to be BIG!

Actually, you know what??? In life, sometimes you take the unexpected route and you turn out happier... than you think you would be. Like for my current job, after the interview, I didn't think I was going to get it... but hey the 6 months here, I can say it's one of the best time I have while working! And the 1 hour long interview I had recently, the same goes for it. I felt being grilled. Burnt. At the end of it, I left with diminishing hope that my life would never be in that kind of environment. Now I'm selected, I should be happy, isn't it!

My heart says,"Go with it, go with it... Run..."

Violent teddy

Knut. This video has my heart almost jumped out... Little bear is getting violent, even though he still is very very playful. Can I say it's violently playful? Fortunately, he still doesn't hurt people and I hope he won't. But afterall, he's a bear, a carnivore. He eats meat, and I hope he will still recognize his daddy and friends after he has grown up to be a big polar. I can't help but am falling in love with his laughable gestures.

Knut visits the zoo

I can't help but to share this... It really brightens my day and I can't help giggling watching this naughty bear having his zoo tour. He's so curious about everything, like me! And I love the part where he and the wolf(or fox) are looking at each other/touching on the glass panel but couldn't do anything... and he rolled himself on the ground. Watch him play with the bird too :)))

Such a clever little polar bear, love ya!!!!!

If you can't decide what to study?

You scored as French/Spanish/OtherLanguage, You should strongly consider majoring (or minoring) in a foreign language, especially French or Spanish as they have a greater use in today's world. But other languages could be useful to you as well, such as Chinese, Japanese, German, Italian, or many others. With a major in a foreign language you could teach, or work for a company as a translator or foreign correspondant. It is possible that the best major for you is your 2nd, 3rd, or even 5th listed category, so be sure to consider ALL majors in your OTHER high scoring categories (below). You may score high in a category you didnt think you would--it is possible that a great major for you is something you once dismissed as not for you. The right major for you will be something 1) you love and enjoy and 2) are really great at it. Consider adding a minor or double majoring to make yourself standout and to combine your interests. A minor in a foriegn language is useful for ANY major. Also, business or political science are great minors for a foreign language major. Please post your results in your myspace/blog/journal. French/Spanish/OtherLanguage 94% HR/BusinessManagement 69% Psychology/Sociology 69% Accounting/Finance/Marketing 69% English/Journalism/Comm 69% Visual&PerformingArts 63% Education/Counseling 63% PoliticalScience/Philosophy 56% Nursing/AthleticTraining/Health 56% Physics/Engineering/Computer 56% Biology/Chemistry/Geology 56% History/Anthropology/LiberalArts 50% Mathematics/Statistics 50% Religion/Theology 44% WHAT MAJOR IS RIGHT FOR YOU? created with QuizFarm.com My remark: Hey, it's pretty accurate, the top 5 majors are all something I have great interest in, not very sure about the HR or Accounting, but otherwise, good choices it has made for me ;)

A good designer is selfless

How many people i.e. designers have learnt that???

Those whom probably did I guess are working for Adobe;) Well I do think that even the Adobe evangelists must have kept some software secrets to themselves, which would only be revealed in the next upcoming version of the software. That's how CS jumps so fast to CS3 now in a few years!

A lot of good artists are selfish, well arts is supposed to be abstract and I guess the creator has the rights to keep their idea their own, original. But we all have seen some good artists or designers sharing their tips, writing up tutorials... That's the way to go, knowledge are meant to be passed around or shared. Like a saying, if you die, you can't carry the money to the coffin, so does it apply to the knowledge you have been secretly burying at the back of your head.

Coming to this, what sparked me off?? I guess, this job I have applied, it's named User Interface Designer. To design products meant for consumers' usage, there's this very basic goal: To make it user-friendly and enhance the user experience (like the boss said so!). And to do that, you have to put yourself in their shoes, you think for the other person (what does he/she wants or expects how the product works). Somehow I believe the designer has to be one very considerate person, not in just designing but in all aspects of life to be able to do a good job. Hehehee, I guess I fit the bill (far too considerate for people's feelings)... Anyway, this is a very challenging job and very tough one I think!