Updates on the stuff that I am suppose to buy...

1. A new pair of spectacles. $200. [New budget: $300. Want to include Trasition glasses] My current one is already 3 years old. And i guess a good investment of 200 bucks for something that would last you for 3 years is worth the money. However, i might consider going for lasik. So I guess this should be on hold.
2. Hermes Watch. $200. [Might goes up to 300 as well] If all goes well, i might be able to get myself a pair of Hermes watch at that cheap price.
3. LASIK. $3000.[Something to get AFTER 3 years. Decided to wait for better technology and a more sizable savings] Yes, I want perfect eyesight! Rawrrrr. I would probably be getting it 3 years down the road, when i have a sizable savings.
4. Driving License. $2000. Thats the price. And yes, this should come in 2 years down the road.
5. Air Con. $2500. I hope to get this by June next year. I mean, its when all the hot season starts. Without good rest, i can't work properly. Ha.
6. Starcraft 2 and Diablo 3 when it comes out. $200. Self explanatory. [I might need to better computer too!]
7. Netbook. $600. End of this year. Tired of carrying the heavy laptop out. Would probably hand the old one to my Aunt since she paid for it in the first place. [Canceled, as I would be using company laptop]
8. Added new: Graduation photos $400 paid.
9. Added new. Overseas trip! Hope to make 1 Trip a year. Budget around 1.5k each.

Work has been going for full force for the past 2 months. All is well thus far. But things are getting pretty messy. I'm still trying to figure out a way to organise my mess in a graceful manner. The headache comes in when you have an online version for easy collaboration, but your stuck to doing your work locally in your machines cause the online program is slowing down the computer like phone bloat wares.

Due to the incompetencies of the work computer, it has forced me to look for alternatives to help manage my work better. Thus, I have complied a nice list for all my fortunate users. These programs takes up very little space and they are immensely useful. Last of all, no one can really argue with free right?

Stickies http://www.zhornsoftware.co.uk/stickies/
Extremely useful if you don't want your stickies to be limited to the side bar. Or background. Able to change the sticky colour, font, size, comes with bullet formatting, ability to save sticky notes and send to friends, roll up your stickies, set them to be always on top, hide them from view, short-cut controls and more. After getting it, my screen is now plastered with all types of sticky. However, I can easily hide or show them with some key strokes, which makes my screen not so messy after all.

Deskpins http://users.forthnet.gr/pat/efotinis/programs/deskpins.html
If you find yourself having to compare information or data across two windows, you might have tried resizing each window to fit both of them in your screen such that they are both viewable at the same time. Now, you can easily pin a windows to be on top always, regardless of your active windows. Just resize one window to be smaller and pin it up! Best of all, short cut keys to make everything easier.

QTTabBar http://qttabbar.wikidot.com/
Ever wished to have tabbed browsing in your windows file explorer? Now you have it!

Textpad http://www.textpad.com/
Now, my colleagues recommended this. It seems to be more powerful than wordpad. However, I have limited opportunities to discover its usefulness. Perhaps you guys can give it a whirl and let me know.

pdfFactory http://www.fineprint.com/
Simple to use pdf editing tools. Of course, you are not able to edit directly on the pdf. Your edits are limited to annotations and drawing shapes on top of the pdf files. However, the limitations may be due to me using the free version. Otherwise, this is not really that useful, but still worth to give it a try. Furthermore, it comes with tab browsing for all your pdf files. That might be a plus point for you!

Ok that's all that I have in my work computer. Just a heads up to those of you who intends to try it out. Firstly, I have only tested it on windows xp. For the more advance machines, please browse through their websites to validate that its operable on your system. Secondly, I have managed to install all of these applications without System Administrator access, so feel free to try it on your work computer. Lastly, do share with me any new programs that you find useful and its not listed here. Sharing Is Caring eh.

I guess i just have to post this up.

Few weeks ago we had an outing. The usual few of JC band of us. And it was there that SY told us about her breakup.

I think everyone feels super super shag for her.

Even now, I still feel super shag for her.

For those others, this is not like the normal bgr break ups. They had been together for around 5 years. Had plans to marry. Gotten a flat. And expecting to collect the flat in a few months time.

And all is gone.

That is how freaking shag.

I pray that God would guide her.

Talking to yap on msn just made it even more real. That, its really that's it. And she must be mopping somewhere wondering about life.

As friends who are reading this, lets support her together.

I'll try to arrange some meet up just for pure fun and enjoyment. Like the time it was in JC.

After the first pay check, its time for me to list down a bunch of stuffs that i might be spending on. For the next couple of years or so.

1. A new pair of spectacles. $200. My current one is already 3 years old. And i guess a good investment of 200 bucks for something that would last you for 3 years is worth the money. However, i might consider going for lasik. So I guess this should be on hold.
2. Hermes Watch. $200. If all goes well, i might be able to get myself a pair of Hermes watch at that cheap price.
3. LASIK. $3000. Yes, I want perfect eyesight! Rawrrrr. I would probably be getting it 3 years down the road, when i have a sizable savings.
4. Driving License. $2000. Thats the price. And yes, this should come in 2 years down the road.
5. Air Con. $2500. I hope to get this by June next year. I mean, its when all the hot season starts. Without good rest, i can't work properly. Ha.
6. Starcraft 2 and Diablo 3 when it comes out. $200. Self explanatory. [I might need to better computer too!]
7. Netbook. $600. End of this year. Tired of carrying the heavy laptop out. Would probably hand the old one to my Aunt since she paid for it in the first place.

So in total that would probably set me back by 8700. Or 14.5 months of savings. Rawrrrr. I'm a poor boy.

Just a update on a few things.

Had my very first week of work. Quite a roller coaster ride.

First day was just getting into clearing the administrative stuffs and knowing everyone else. Met up with the senior thats going to be on the same engagement as me for the next half of year. Of course, the funny thing is that the engagement is super understaffed. Its just going to be the both of us doing everything. But another senior is going to help out as and when he can. So I hope that all is fine and ok.

Second day, met the client in their office. And had lunch with them. Treat by my own company. 9 course lunch really can put you to sleep at the later part of the day. After which, training in Singapore Pools. The whole idea is to audit the number of people winning and the total winning prize money tallies with what they have. Sounds fun, but totally boring process.

Alas, fate would have led me to lose my pass right after 2 days of work. Woe is me. But I was able to reclaim it in the fourth day.

Third day, I was doing the official work as my senior walk through some of the stuffs with me. It wasn't that difficult per se. Its not that technical too. But its just... Too.. IT.. Ok fine, I'm in IT advisory. But still.. It just feels weird. Like I have turned 1 big round and went back into the IT industry once again.

The last two days of the week were probably the same thing. Doing the work.

And of course, I wondered if this is the industry that i really want to go to. I'm not really sure now..

But I'll stick to my plan. 3 years CPA. 5 years CISA. Afterwhich, I may got CAD for forensic, or I might decide my next path in my career.

Unless the job is really SO horrible. Then I guess I would have no other choice..

Results were out.

To those who were in the know, managed to graduate.

To those who were in more of the know, obtained my second uppers.

Ever since my O level days, this is probably the only time that I attained what I set out to achieve. Wanted 8 points for O levels but got 10 instead. Wanted 4 As for A levels but got 3 instead. And thus i decided to lower the bar and just aim for Second Uppers.

Truth be told, scoring in my course is not difficult. I had some bad luck and good luck. Modules that were suppose to get A end up B and modules that were suppose to be B end up A. Woe to me though, the former happens more frequent than the latter.

Pretty much of my friends are in the first class category though. Of course, that doesn't really affect me. Somehow, at the end of the day, they are the one coming to me in clarifying concepts. This really goes to show that our education system is really quite screwed up and getting good grades is not the best measure of a person's abilities. Of course, its a litmus test which simplifies life. Then again, this is why banks requires candidates to go through their own constructed numerical and verbal reasoning test. And this is also why my first class honors friend can fail 3 times while I breezed through them all.

Ok, maybe I'm just bluffing my way through, putting up a false front on my lack of first class honors. But i seriously don't care. I rather spend the senseless time dotaing than mugging. Of course my friends were able to land upon 4.5k a month job while im stuck receiving half of what they are getting. But hey, money ain't everything. And I don't believe I'm up for that sort of responsibility and level yet. After all, for every dollar they pay you, you would be expected to generate 100 more. That's just business.

So I guess. Thats the end of my formal education. Next goal would be CPA and CISA. And I might consider Masters. Depending on how things would go in my life.

Onward to next phase. Quite apprehensive about it.

This could be a good way for me to hide my post.

Ok, this is a long and overdued update. But whatever.

Took my final paper exam in NTU. Of course this sem is not without its fair share of set backs. Firstly, the screwing up the the S/U option. Secondly, I believe I did relatively badly for my core paper to warrant a B-. Im hoping that today's elective might provide me with some leeway. Perhaps a B+/A- would be good. But of course, I am going to expect the very worse. As usual. If all goes well, I would obtain a second uppers for myself. Which is what i have set out to do in the very first place.

So i guess its time to look back and see if i would have done something differently. Yes, even though i believed that should i put in the effort, getting first class is not a big deal. But i decided that there were more things than grades in life. As such, despite being eligible for double specialization, i chose to took all the nonsense elective, all in the name of fun. And not bad, i gotten myself quite a wide range of elective. I did computer science (pong to warcraft), Bio (Bio fiction), Chem (Forensic), Physic (Astronomy), Art (Creative design for ad), Psycology (Crisis managment) and finally, a language (French). All in all, definitely better than java and database programming. However, the only gripe i have with my uni life is the lack of uni life. Of course, it just so happens that i had difficulty clicking with the hall people, which just makes me more withdrawn from them. So i guess, thats my only regret. Not to mention, failure to take part in fun competition just for fun. Apparently my friends are not spotting enough.

Recently tried to apply for a game testing job in Lucas Arts. Well, i din't make the cut. Not that its a big loss to me, but it would definitely had been a fun 2 months should i be able to take up such a job. However, interesting point to note, when the HR called me, they said that they were regret to inform me that they are going to look at other candidates and added that they would contact me should something relevant come up again. This sound totally like jp m0rg4n. Where the HR did the same thing to me. Perhaps its standard protocol. But im pretty sure i won't be receiving any calls from them any time soon. Probably never.

So finally school is out of the way, and i have some stuffs to settle. So let me just note some of the stuff down. Loads of church work to do. 10 anniversary planning X 2, and church finances. Get new computers for church as well. Format my own comp and install the long awaited windows 7. Clean up my room. And tidy up the notes accumulated over the  past 2 years or so. Settle the final itinerary for my taiwan trip. Have some post exam madness. Meet up with people, like KSM.

And yes, i gotten my pay raise. Which is $100 more than the normally offered rate. This means that i can have a take home pay of 2000. I intend to save 700 a month and spent 450 a month. Im not so sure if that is really possible. Maybe someone that is working and is keeping track of her finances can let me know if 450 expenses is reasonable? No utilities fees though, those are paid to my mom from another part of the salary.

Projecting my pay and income for the next 3-4 years, it would seem quite impossible to get myself a house in Toa Payoh. My own house is 300k and its only 66 sqm. Which i guess is too small for some. However, im not in the mind to laden myself with a 30 years loan. So im not exactly sure how should i go about solving the housing problem. Of course, the simplest one would be to sell the current house and get a much bigger one in a less ideal location. But my old folks have grown used to this place, and i don't really have the inclination to uproot them from some place which they had stayed for the past 40 years or so. The second route would be to suck it up and just get an overpriced flat in my area. Of course, this house ultimately will be mine, since im the only child. So it might be viable to undertake the 30 years loan afterall.

Just a rule of thumb to those who want to buy a flat. Your flat should be 5 x of your household salary. Of course, you can be more prudent and peg the price to your salary instead, in case of 1 person deciding to quit to look after the family.

In such financial difficulty, i guess we must learn to be more careful with our own monies. Else someone will blame you for not opening your eyes wide enough!

Alright, just a little update on what's been happening.

Signed my contract with EY as ITRA. Apparently the job scope is IT audit. The advisory stuff will come in in the later part of the career. Pay is miserable. Received a call from them however, that they will be revising the pay upwards. Hope to hear the good news soon, and hope its not a misery $50. I'm expected $100, but if they can match KP $200 then it would be even better.

So given the change in direction, I would hope to stay for 5 years in EY. Just so that I can obtain my CPA and CISA. I guess CAD would have to wait and Forensic Audit would probably be even further out of my reach. We shall see how things go in the future. If possible, staying on and becoming a partner would seems to be a great idea.

School been the same. Slacked through the whole of the first 2 weeks citing add drop excuse. Have to pick up my readings. Probably this week have to start. Else will fall behind too badly. BS803 is super bullshit. Went for the lecture at 2:25, but to my horrors, the lecture theater was completely full. So full that people have to sit on the floor, to the point where there is no space to stand in the lecture hall. Have to skip it, and to top it off, there was a 4 hours break before the lecture.

Been taking up quite a number of roles in my church. Took up assistant treasurer. So now I have to look at the accounts. Still new at looking through the accounts, but i hope to be able to get used to it ASAP. In addition, I'm in charge of organising the 10th anniversary program for the youth. Which is a huge program, so hope that all goes well for me this year. This would really be a very hectic year it seems.

Been watching on some random drama. Big Bang Theory is amazingly funny. Regretted not watching earlier. It's probably the only comedy drama that i would not mind watching it again. Its short, to the point, and funny. After which i picked up fringe, the more serious version of Big Bang Theory. Which was not bad by itself. And each episode is a different case, as such, it does not feel as though the whole series is being very draggy, in the sense that there's a suitable ending to each episode.

I guess, thats all for the update.