The Low Down on Singapore Taxes

What is to be done on a hot Sunday afternoon where life is like living out a sci-fi movie - everything is being baked under the hot sun and threatening to explode into a culmination of light and heat waves.

Read the Singapore Personal Income Tax Guide! That's what.....It doesn't get more epic than this. :D

I'm pleased to report that the personal income tax rates in Singapore is noted to be one of the lowest in the world. (My Australian co-worker kindly alerts me that even if Singapore has one of the lowest personal income tax rates in the world, we should not forget that we also have a combination of other taxes and expenses to contend with. I painfully regard the price of COE and accept his comment).

Back to basics....and to summarize what could be a rather complicated process, one is to look at it in 3 steps: Determining which tax residency status you belong to, determine the chargeable income for the tax year and then applying the progressive tax rate against the chargeable income.

1. Status of Tax Residency
Divided into into 2 categories.
a) As a Singapore tax resident

• Singaporean
• Singapore Permanent Resident and have established your permanent home in Singapore
• A foreigner who has stayed or worked in Singapore for 183 days or more in the tax year

b) As a Singapore non tax resident

• A foreigner who stayed or worked in Singapore for less than  183 days in the tax year. 

2. Determine chargeable income

Chargeable Income = Total Income - Expenses - Donations - Personal Relief

3. Personal Income Tax Rates for Singapore tax resident

For more information, please refer to: http://www.guidemesingapore.com/taxation/topics/singapore-tax-rates

Note: They even have a very helpful online tax calculator.

Inner Peace... Inner Peace

I swear that on some days this is how I feel ....................

And this is what I aspire to become 

Hell Yeah!! Keep on rocking!

Weekend Project - Standing Desk

I've recently been contemplating about the whole concept of working at a standing desk. 

In fact, for the past week or so, whenever I had to read documents at work, I would make myself stand near the filing cabinet or at the pantry to read. I have an awfully nice pantry at the work place with a fantastic view...the filing cabinet though has got the perfect height.

My endeavours have received its fair share of stares and quirky comments from my colleagues who were curious about why I didn't want to sit in a perfectly nice chair to do my work. The only time I was made to stand in the past was as punishment for not bringing my textbook or completing my homework in Primary school.

A few of them got it when I explained about the concept that humans aren't meant to be sitting on their asses 8 hours a day but I figure that most of them might have concluded that I have finally lost my mind and politely walked away. 

In my defence, I guess the whole concept of standing and working have not quite got on in Asia although I'm not closed to the idea that I might have been an annoying distraction shifting from foot to foot and ultimately looking like the floor supervisor lording over my minions.  (just kidding). 

At the end of my one week experiment, I found that I was able to focus much better when reading long boring legal documents and further research on the internet convinced me that I should persist on.  

After a bit more research last night, I finally decided to bite the bullet and convert my home's work table into a standing desk. The final push to this decision were some articles that suggested that I could "hack" my way into a relatively cheap solution of a standing desk before deciding if this was something that I wanted to commit myself to.  

After a couple of hours of hard work (and alot of perspiration on a hot Saturday afternoon), Jamie's version of the standing desk is completed. (aka: the poor man's standing desk)

Ta-Da!!!!!!!!!!!!

Jamie's version of the standing desk (the cheap way)

Everything that you see in the picture that was used to convert my current table to a standing desk was abducted from some corner of the house, mostly forgotten and collecting dust, but now playing an important part on my road towards healthy living. 

I must not forget to thank my mum for being extremely supportive after I explained my intentions to her. She firstly gave me permission to scavenge the house for materials which I could put together to achieve the appropriate height and also gave me suggestions on how to put everything together. (Thank you mum! You are the best). 

As a result, total investment cost for my standing desk: $0!

Hooray!! 

I found the following articles extremely helpful when making my final decision to work at a standing desk. Enjoy!

Gina Trapani's Reasons for switching to a standing desk:

http://smarterware.org/7102/how-and-why-i-switched-to-a-standing-desk

Kevin Michaluk's Reasons for switching to a standing desk:

http://crackberry.com/standing-desks

Gina Trapani's blog after working at a standing desk for a year:

http://lifehacker.com/standing-desk/

Some ideas to do a DIY standing desk:

http://www.officefitness.org/2012/05/diy-standing-desk-plans-ideas/

Adam Pash's view on the benefits of working at standing desk:

http://lifehacker.com/5840754/forget-the-standing-desk-you-just-need-to-move-regularly

2012 Book 5 - Catching Fire

Its been almost a week since I have finished this book. However, I've been so swamped at work that I haven't had time to pen down my thoughts so I will make this a quick one before I head off to bed.

In my opinion, Book 2 is better than the first. In fact, amongst the 3 books, I enjoyed Book 2 the most of them all.

There you have it....I have indeed finished Book 3 - Mockingjay as well. I didn't quite enjoy Mockingjay though but I will save my rants for another time in a dedicated book review just for the Mockingjay.  :-)

Back to Book 2.

Based on most of the reviews and discussions I have had about the Hunger Game series, it appears that I'm not alone in my impression of the trilogy. Catching Fire has received mostly positive reviews and appears to be a favourite at least amongst my friends who have finished reading the series. 

Jamie's Rating: 4.5 out of 5

The story starts with Katniss Everdeen enjoying a much deserved recovery in her new found life in District 12. She is now staying in the Victor's Village and has her needs mostly taken care of by the Capitol. She is expected to go on Victory tours and eventually become a mentor for future Hunger games but on the most part, her family no longer needs to worry about making ends meet and other practical matters. So it appears that the worst is over for Katniss, or is it? 

 

Unbeknown to her, Katniss catches on during her victory tour that she had unwittingly sparked off a rebellion against the oppressive Capitol which seemed to be ...yes...gaining momentum or rather "catching fire". For the sake of her loved ones, she attempts to suppress the rebellion (or minimally not further aggravate matters) but finds herself failing miserably. 

In a twist of fate or rather manipulation on the part of the evil President Snow, Katniss and Peeta find themselves forced to return to the arena in a special edition of the Hunger Games. With each strategizing to sacrifice themselves for the other, how would the story end for this "star-crossed lovers"...........? 

As always, for more information and other book reviews on Catching Fire: 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catching_Fire

http://thebookconnectionccm.blogspot.com/2012/05/book-review-catching-fire-by-suzanne.html

http://www.ittakesawoman.co.uk/blog/2012/05/14/book-review-catching-fire-by-suzanne-collins/



2012 Book 4 - The Hunger Games

I have never heard of this book till the Hollywood movie hit the cinemas a couple of months back. I was duly informed by a fellow avid reader that this novel comes highly recommended. "You will enjoy it!"....I was promised. My interest was mildly piqued when I saw that this Hollywood blockbuster had achieved quite a following....(close to the "Twilight" proportions). Eye Candy?? Yum!!

So what is "The Hunger Games" about....

We are placed in the future, in the country of Panem (where the countries of North America once existed). The surviving human race are mostly split into 12 Districts, each functioning with a special purpose and all working under the direction of the highly advanced metropolis and privileged few known as the Capitol. Life is hard and the people in the districts are living in perpetual poverty. To keep the districts in check (and for sadistic entertainment purposes), the Capitol throws an annual event known as "The Hunger Games" where one boy and one girl aged 12 to 18  are selected by lottery from the 12 Districts to compete in a televised reality show where the objective for the contenders are simple.  To Kill or be Killed. Only 1 child can be declared a victor and return home....the last one standing  breathing.

Wait...wait....wait a minute...................This plot reminds me so much of another Japanese movie - "Battle Royale". And boy, did I hate that movie. Grotesque!!!

This book and I....we are not getting onto a good start.............

Jamie's Rating: 4.0 out of 5
From the rating, you can safely say that I'm a convert. I finished the book in less than 48 hours and was rather pleased that I did not suffer from "Battle Royale" blacklash. In fact, there were a lot of emotions in play within this book which was able to draw the reader (aka me) in. The movie was also rather enjoyable (Eye Candy!!) but once again, for a truly immersive experience, reading the book is still the best way to go.  
Other book reviews:http://www.seattlepi.com/lifestyle/blogcritics/article/Book-Review-The-Hunger-Games-by-Suzanne-Collins-3431912.php http://childrensbooks.about.com/od/productreviews/fr/The-Hunger-Games-review.htm
For more information on battle royal, please click: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_Royale

2012 Book 3 - Shadowfever

The truth is...I've been waiting for this book for almost a year. And I've never waited for a book before so this would be my first and oh yea....waiting is never fun.....

My first Fever series book "Dark Fever" was courtesy of Sony. It was one of those free featured books that I could download with my Sony eBook reader. If my memory serves me correctly, it was about 4 years ago and after a couple of chapters, I found it so compelling that I finished the book within the week or less. After some difficultly, I downloaded the other 3 books in the Fever series (Blood Fever, Fae Fever and Dream Fever)  and (to put it in Karen's style of writing) relished and devoured them. Imagine my horror when I realized that the key to the puzzle, the final book which would put an end to the suspense was not even written yet and was not due for release for another 12 months!! HORROR!

After a year of waiting and even adding the author onto my Facebook so that I can keep tabs of the release date, the final book of the Fever Series "Shadow Fever"is released.

Okay, this is where it gets crazy: I found that I didn't quite enjoy it as much as I had enjoyed the earlier books. It was like a roller coaster ride with parts with me going "HELL YEAH" and then parts where I simply glossed through (mostly in the middle where Mac and Dani became just so tedious to read). Overall though, I'm pleased to say that  the book seemed to redeem itself towards the last quarter of the book which fortunately makes for a rather happy ending for me and my one year wait. :D

I really think that the Fever Series makes for a good blockbuster trilogy. (Yes 5 books condensed into 3 movies and please remove the tedious Mac and Dani parts).

Jamie's Rating: 3.5 out of 5 

(But make sure you read the other books first or you would be lost with this one.) 

For more information about the Fever Series, please go to:
http://www.karenmoning.com/kmm/novels/fever-series.html

For other reviews on ShadowFever, please go to:
http://dearauthor.com/book-reviews/overall-b-reviews/b-minus-reviews/review-shadowfever-by-karen-marie-moning/
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7304203-shadowfever
http://theunreadreader.com/2011/01/review-shadowfever.html

Bruno Mars - It will rain

Love this song! The stage is ultra cool too. My jaw dropped halfway through....
.

但愿人长久 - A Chinese Poem that changed my life

这词作于丙辰（宋神宗熙宁九年即公元1076年）中秋，苏轼四十一岁，时为密州（现在的山东诸城）太守。

题说“兼怀子由”，当时苏轼与其弟子由已经六七年不见了

明月几时有？把酒问青天。 
不知天上宫阙，今夕是何年。 
我欲乘风归去，又恐琼楼玉宇，高处不胜寒。 
起舞弄清影，何似在人间？ 

转朱阁，低绮户，照无眠。 
不应有恨，何事长向别时圆？ 
人有悲欢离合，月有阴晴圆缺，此事古难全。 
但愿人长久，千里共婵娟。

About the Poem:

这首词所表现的思想感情，本来甚为明显，苏轼因政治处境的失意，以及和其弟苏辙的别离，中秋对月，不无抑郁惆怅之感。但是他没有陷在消极悲观的情绪中，旋即以超然达观的思想排除忧患，终于表现出对人间生活的热爱的矛盾过程。而前人却多妄解，说神宗读到“琼楼玉宇”两句，叹云：“苏轼终是爱君”，即量移汝州。此说与事实不符。苏轼移汝州在黄州之后，不能说因这词而“量移汝州”。 

词的上片主要抒发自己对政治的感慨。开头“明月几时有，把酒问青天”两句，是从李白《把酒问月》诗：“青天有月来几时？我今停杯一问之”两句脱化而来。同时点明饮酒赏月。

接下说“不知天上宫阙，今夕是何年”，表面上好像是赞美月夜；也有当今朝廷上情况不知怎样的含意。《诗经》中“今夕何夕，见此良人！”并非问今天是什么日子，而是赞美的语气：“今天是多么好的日子啊！”的意思。下面“我欲乘风归去”三句，表面是说“我本来是神仙境界中来的，现在想随风回到天上神仙住的‘琼楼玉宇’中去，但是又怕经受不住天上的寒冷”。这几句也是指政治遭遇而言，想回到朝廷中去，但是又怕党争激烈，难以容身。末了“起舞弄清影，何似在人间”两句是说，既然天上回不去，还不如在人间好，这里所谓“人间”，即指作地方官而言，只要奋发有为，做地方官同样可以为国家出力。这样想通了，他仰望明月，不禁婆娑起舞，表现出积极的乐观的情绪。 

词的上片叙述了他的身世之感和思想矛盾，下片抒发对兄弟的怀念之情。苏轼和苏辙，手足之情甚笃。据苏辙《超然台记叙》说：“子瞻（苏轼字）通守余杭，三年不得代。以辙之在济南也，求为东州守。既得请高密，五月乃有移知密州之命。”苏轼抛掉湖山秀丽的杭州，由南而北，原为兄弟之情。但到密州之后，仍不能与弟辙时常晤对。对弟弟的思念，构成这首词下片的抒情文字。 

下片开头“转朱阁，低绮户，照无眠”三句，“转朱阁”，谓月光移照华美的楼阁。“低绮户”，谓月光照着有离愁别恨的人，使其不得安眠。“朱阁”“绮户”，与上片“琼楼玉宇”对照。既写月光，也写月下的人。这样就自然过渡到个人思弟之情的另一个主题上去。“不应有恨”两句是用反诘的语气、埋怨的口吻向月亮发问。“不应有恨”而恨在其中，正是“道是无情却有情”的意思。下面“人有悲欢离合，月有阴晴圆缺，此事古难全”三句，转为安慰的语气；既然月有圆缺，人有离合，自古皆然，那是没有什么可悲伤的了。惟愿兄弟俩彼此珍重，在远别时光里共赏中秋美好的月色。“蝉娟”，月色美好的样子。此句从谢庄《月赋》“隔千里兮共明月”句蜕变而来。理解到远别的人可以“千里共婵娟”，也就能做到“不应有恨”了。以美好境界结束全词，与上片结尾“起舞弄清影，何似在人间”一样，是积极乐观的。一方面是对兄弟不能团聚的安慰，同时也是对自己政治遭遇的安慰。 

这首词的上、下片都带有人生哲学的意味，如上片结语“起舞弄清影，何似在人间”，这与陶潜桃花源诗所说：“凡圣无异居，清浊共此世。心闲偶自见，念起忽已逝”诸句约略同意。就是说无论在什么地方，都有凡境、圣域、清境、浊境。当一个人思想开朗、胸怀坦荡的时候，就是在圣域、清境里，反之，清境、圣域便都不见了。同时这也就是儒家“无人不自得”的思想。有了正确对待事物的思想，那么无论在哪里都可以有所作为，心安理得。在人间也可以得到快乐，何必定要到天上去？在外面做地方官同样可以做一番事业，何必一定要回到朝廷中去呢？下片的“此事古难全”含有这样的意思：世界上不可能有永远圆满的事情，人生有欢聚，也必然有离别；这正是与月亮有圆时、也总有缺时一样，原是自然界的规律。 

五代北宋士大夫的词集中，也有一些包含人生哲学意味的词，到苏轼才有了进一步的发展。这首词虽然包含人生哲学，然而它是通过一个完美的文学意境来表现的。我们首先感觉到的是那中秋之夜美好的月色，体会到的是作者丰富的感情，而不是枯燥的说教。同时，词里虽有出世与入世的矛盾，情与理的矛盾，但最后还是以理遣情，不脱离现实，没有悲观失望的消极思想，情绪是健康的。同时，这首词具有强烈的艺术感染力。所以它成为千百年来人们所赞美所称赞的名作。

2012 Book 2 - Hard Truths to Keep Singapore Going

As you probably know, I started the year with this book but I've only completed reading it as of 4.30am this morning. (March 10th) That's almost 70 days and is quite a considerable amount of time by my standards. 

The reason why I took such a long time is simple: This is one of the books where I find myself taking as long as I needed to read, contemplate and re-read again where necessary. Still, I'm not confident to say that I understood it all. 

The first few lines of the Foreword goes like this:

"My abiding concern for Singapore arises from my belief that the younger generation, especially those below 35, had never seen the harsh economic conditions. They therefore do not know the threats we face from neighbouring countries" 

Lee Kuan Yew, Singapore, August 2010.

Firstly, I am pleased to say that I still fit into LKY's definition of younger generation (that is less below 35). :)

I must also admit that (after having completed the first few chapters of the book) I might also have been guilty of living in a "make-believe" world of safety and progress, in which I might have unwittingly started to take for granted. Bottom line: The book tells me that we shouldn't and that every step we have made was a combination of luck, the ability to seize the right opportunity and also consistently making painfully calculated decisions for the future. With that said, between my "make believe" world of safety and the "dark and dangerous" place that LKY have painted out, I believe that the truth might just be somewhere in between. 

Written in a question and answer style, this book is a fairly informative and quite an interesting read. Fresh out of the 2011 election fever, I dare say that some of the unhappiness we have raised can perhaps be addressed by this book in terms of difference in opinion on ideology, a matter of differences in terms of  prioritization (doing first things first) and last but not least, the idea of science or pragmatism (also labelled as elitist thinking by critics). Of which, MM Lee is adamant on his views and have no apologies about. 

I found out for instance, according to Gosta Esping - Andersen's book The Three World of Welfare Capitalism, a society like Singapore is described as a "liberal" welfare state", where welfare benefits are means-tested and social insurance and income transfers are modest. Such states end up with high levels of income inequality because the government only guarantees a minimum level of subsistence and leaves it up to individual effort to make up the rest. This is to be contrasted against countries such as Austria, Italy and France which have a conservative welfare regime, where social benefits preserve class and social status. Scandinavian statues such as Norway, Sweden and Denmark have expensive social democratic welfare regimes, which seek to equalise standards of living to a high level for all. 

All in all, this is the first LKY book that I've picked up and I dare say that it will not be my last. I found myself agreeing to a large part of his reasoning and at one point, considered if I might be guilty of stereotyping and a bigoted "elitist" too. Horror! Haha. I will consider this more. 

Jamie's Rating: 4 out of 5 (Recommended read)

Other reviews:

http://vickychong.wordpress.com/2011/03/22/lee-kuan-yew-hard-truths-to-keep-singapore-going-book-review/

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/10379147-lee-kuan-yew

Madonna @ Superbowl 2012

Madonna ROCKs!!!!

A Day in the Life of Jeremy Lin

LOL! After watching this, he makes me feel like a total slob.....

The Degradation of Singlish - Dee Kosh

This is epic funny!! I love it when he goes stark raving mad during his rants.

2012 Book 1 - Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson

I typically don't enjoy reading biographies but this book was so riveting that I had trouble putting it down! I would describe it as one of the better (if not the best) non fiction book that I can recall reading in a very long time. 

If you don't believe me, trust the experts. Steve Jobs by Water Isaacson has been recently nominated by Amazon as a contender for "The Best Book of 2011" award. For more information on the Top 100 contenders, here is the link.  

Apart from gaining an insight to the otherwise unknown life of the legendary Steve Jobs, I also found myself becoming much more appreciative of the iPhone and iPad devices which I'm sure that everyone would agree are simply life transforming devices which most of us would now have trouble living without. 

Being a Intel and Windows person from the day I started using computers, I've neither been caught up with the Apple "We are the Rebels" siren call nor have been particularly attracted by its design or aesthetic plus points to want to make myself go through the trouble of working on a Apple desktop in a predominantly Windows world. However, by the end of the book, I found myself itching to get my hands on an iMac so that I can see for myself the "close integrated hardware and software" vision that Steve so adamantly held close to his heart. 

Beyond the magical transformation that I've just described, this book of about 700 pages have also for very special reasons (which I would not further elaborate in this post) touched me on a much deeper and personal level. :D

I hope that you will enjoy reading this book as much as I did. 

Jamie's Rating: 5 out of 5 (Must read)

About the Book

Based on more than forty interviews with Jobs conducted over two years—as well as interviews with more than a hundred family members, friends, adversaries, competitors, and colleagues—Walter Isaacson has written a riveting story of the roller-coaster life and searingly intense personality of a creative entrepreneur whose passion for perfection and ferocious drive revolutionized six industries: personal computers, animated movies, music, phones, tablet computing, and digital publishing.

At a time when America is seeking ways to sustain its innovative edge, and when societies around the world are trying to build digital-age economies, Jobs stands as the ultimate icon of inventiveness and applied imagination. He knew that the best way to create value in the twenty-first century was to connect creativity with technology. He built a company where leaps of the imagination were combined with remarkable feats of engineering.  

Although Jobs cooperated with this book, he asked for no control over what was written nor even the right to read it before it was published. He put nothing off-limits. He encouraged the people he knew to speak honestly. And Jobs speaks candidly, sometimes brutally so, about the people he worked with and competed against. His friends, foes, and colleagues provide an unvarnished view of the passions, perfectionism, obsessions, artistry, devilry, and compulsion for control that shaped his approach to business and the innovative products that resulted.

Driven by demons, Jobs could drive those around him to fury and despair. But his personality and products were interrelated, just as Apple’s hardware and software tended to be, as if part of an integrated system. His tale is instructive and cautionary, filled with lessons about innovation, character, leadership, and values.

Where to get it

1. Popular in Singapore (Get additional 20% discount if you are a Popular member)

2. Shell Gas Station

3. The Book Depository: http://www.bookdepository.co.uk/Steve-Jobs-Exclusive-Biography-Walter-Isaacson/9781408703748

4. Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Steve-Jobs-Walter-Isaacson/dp/1451648537

I won't give up - Jason Mraz

Jason Mraz really rocks!! I love this song. :D

When I look into your eyes
It's like watching the night sky
Or a beautiful sunrise
There's so much they hold
And just like them old stars
I see that you've come so far
To be right where you are
How old is your soul?

I won't give up on us
Even if the skies get rough
I'm giving you all my love
I'm still looking up

And when you're needing your space
To do some navigating
I'll be here patiently waiting
To see what you find

'Cause even the stars they burn
Some even fall to the earth
We've got a lot to learn
God knows we're worth it
No, I won't give up

I don't wanna be someone who walks away so easily
I'm here to stay and make the difference that I can make
Our differences they do a lot to teach us how to use
The tools and gifts we got yeah, we got a lot at stake
And in the end, you're still my friend at least we did intend
For us to work we didn't break, we didn't burn
We had to learn how to bend without the world caving in
I had to learn what I've got, and what I'm not
And who I am

I won't give up on us
Even if the skies get rough
I'm giving you all my love
I'm still looking up
Still looking up.

I won't give up on us (no I'm not giving up)
God knows I'm tough enough (I am tough, I am loved)
We've got a lot to learn (we're alive, we are loved)
God knows we're worth it (and we're worth it)

I won't give up on us
Even if the skies get rough
I'm giving you all my love
I'm still looking up

Shuffling Lions!! Happy Chinese New Year!!

LION Tissue Box in my house....Ultra cute!

I totally cracked up when the music came on and the lions started shuffling. Haha!

新年快乐！ 万事如意！

Heading out for reunion dinner now!! OH YEAH!!

Family Guy - Peter Griffin versus THE Chicken

OH MY GOD....IT WAS EXACTLY LIKE THAT!!!!

I suspect Peter Griffin and I are kindred spirits.....

Hilarious BEYOND words!!!

PLEASE....do yourself a favour and watch the whole thing. Super hilarious man!!!

The Noose - Pornsak Sukhumvit



The Noose - Lu Lu (my favourite character)

水为财嘛。。。。

Hey Soul Sisters - Isn't this cute?

8 Year Old Aidan performs this song on his Ukulele. 
Adorable as hell.



Train - Acoustic Version



Train - Lyrics

Your lipstick stains on the front lobe of my left side brains
I knew I wouldn't forget you, and so I went and let you blow my mind
Your sweet moon beam, the smell of you in every single dream I dream
I knew when we collided, you're the one I have decided who's one of my kind

Hey soul sister, ain't that Mr. Mister on the radio, stereo, the way you move ain't fair, you know!
Hey soul sister, I don't want to miss a single thing you do...tonight
Hey, hey,hey

Just in time, I'm so glad you have a one-track mind like me
You gave my life direction, a game show love connection we can't deny
I'm so obsessed, my heart is bound to beat right out my untrimmed chest
I believe in you, like a virgin, you're Madonna, and I'm always gonna wanna blow your mind

Hey soul sister, ain't that Mr. Mister on the radio, stereo, the way you move ain't fair, you know!
Hey soul sister, I don't want to miss a single thing you do...tonight

The way you can cut a rug, watching you's the only drug I need
You're so gangsta, I'm so thug, you're the only one I'm dreaming of
You see, I can be myself now finally, in fact there's nothing I can't be
I want the world to see you be with me

Hey soul sister, ain't that Mr. Mister on the radio, stereo, the way you move ain't fair, you know!
Hey soul sister, I don't want to miss a single thing you do tonight,
Hey soul sister, I don't want to miss a single thing you do...tonight
Hey, hey,hey

Tonight

Hey, hey,hey

Tonight

My 2 cents worth on Singapore Ministerial Salaries

TADA!!!

Come on ....You knew this post would be inevitable.... I simply cannot resist. :D

However, I have great news for you. I won't be putting forward a detailed post for 2 reasons:

1. I haven't had a chance to review the proposed changes in any detail except for the very summarized newspaper article that I saw on My Paper....(Yes....我报...:D), so I acknowledge that any comments from me now speaking on specifics of the recommendation would not be as informed as I would like.

2. I chanced upon Siew Kum Hong's blog post (and despite my earlier admittance in point 1 to be rather ignorant about the full recommendations formed by the committee), I do have my preliminary assessment and I feel that SKH has so perfectly articulated my sentiments, if not the general "feel" from the ground. 

Therefore, with the above disclaimer in mind, please proceed at your own peril.

To summarize, I'm very appreciative that most of our leaders have very graciously stepped out to openly accept the recommendations or have opted to respect the general population and adopt silent acceptance. (but as Grace Fu has kindly demonstrated, there are always exceptions) 

My personal view is that the pay cut is quite significant so it must hurt in one way or another. In the first place, no one ever complains that money is too much or enough, right? Don't believe me? Ask Jack Neo. 

However, with that said, in spite of the pay cut, dear leaders....you do know that you are still being paid a shit-load of money, don't you? As I know it, even with the pay cut, our leaders remain the highest paid group of politicians IN THE WORLD and really...your income is still *fill in your preferred curse words* obscene compared to the average Singaporean. Please forgive me if I fail to sympathise with your "predicament". 

(And yes I know that Grace Fu is taking alot of flake from netizens over her facebook post but to the likes of Grace "I'm so misunderstood" Fu, if you are not happy, go back to the private sector. No one is stopping you.)

Now that I've gotten that off my chest. Let me continue....:D

In conclusion, yes. While the change in formula to determine the ministerial salary has indeed tipped the scale "oh-so-very slightly" back from EXTREMELY OUTRAGEOUS towards just being plain OUTRAGEOUS, I believe that the general consensus of the masses is that these changes have not  fully addressed the problem. True enough, there will always be that group of people who will never be satisfied no matter what you do but as Siew Kum Hong explains in his post, I believe in this case, there are valid reasons to explain why this problem will not simply be swept under the carpet.

The "AM I SICK" Checklist

THE "AM I SICK" CHECK LIST

1. Sore throat.....CHECKED
2. Cough.....CHECKED
3. Phlegm.... CHECKED
4. Sneezing Fits.....CHECKED
5. Running Nose....CHECKED
6. Headache.....CHECKED
7. FEVER....NOT YET

Guess I score pretty high on this test, huh!!!

I haven't been to the doctors yet. Was kinda hoping that the "off-the shelf" medication from Watsons will just do the trick but as I watch myself going from bad to worse, I guess I have no choice but to officially elevate my status from "I'M NOT SICK" denial stage to "OMG....DO YOU THINK I HAVE AVIAN FLU" hysterical panic stage.

AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Well, as always, with nothing much better to do then sniffle, moan and groan, I decided to park myself on twitter to share my misery with the world. Just as I was kinda doing my thing....a friend shouted back: "A LOT OF PEOPLE FALLING SICK!!!" 

I don't know how to say this but I instantly felt kinda joyous. Let me do some internal soul searching for the sudden burst of joy. Hmmmmm.....Let's see......

For starters, for some strange obscure reason, it just felt good to have someone confirm that I am actually sick. I'm not sure why I needed anyone to tell me that but I guess I did feel a little relieved to hear it. I'm insane...I know.  And secondly, the always rather evil side of me was kinda happy to know that if I'm feeling this sick, there is definitely ONE OF YOU out there who is feeling as miserable as I am feeling. YAY!! We are the carriers.....now let's go out to infect MORE PEOPLE......hahahahaha...

For all you healthy, beautiful people out there, see you soon huh!! 

MUAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHA!

Good Evening to Bother You

1. Introduction to Steven Lim dancing to Lady Marmalade


Its actually VERY disgusting. So please be warned.





2. Steven Lim makes a report after receiving prank calls

#Goodeveningtobotheryou - Really cracked me up!

Watch the link!


3. One of the MANY video response to Steven Lim. This one is by Dee Kosh.

Enough said!

Highly Recommended - 一泡而红 (Already Famous) A Singapore Production

This has got to be the best Singapore production that I've ever seen. "一泡而红" was written and directed by Michelle Chong. She is one talented person who can manage multiple accents brilliantly!! LULU, in particular, from Noose is totally hilarious. (but oops...I digress) :D

From the get go, I was laughing so hard that my sides ached. This show must  NOT be mistaken with those slap stick (cheap jokes) done by Mr Cross Dressing Jack Neo shit which in my personal opinion, is a total waste of time and money. Needless to say, and if it is already not obvious enough, Jack Neo's movies really DO GRATE ON MY NERVES!

And while I'm at that topic, NOOOOOO....I don't think Jack Neo's productions are accurate portrayal of Singapore or the average Singaporeans. Okay, perhaps only the really spastic ones...like Steven Lim....(Ooopss...where the hell did that come from? Too much YouTube. #Goodeveningtobotheryou. If you don't know what I"m talking about, you don't know what you are missing!!)

Okay, back to the movie "Already Famous". I would summarize to say that I would be totally happy to buy another ticket to watch this movie in the cinema, if only to show support to a good job well done.

Here's the trailer.....SUPPORT GOOD LOCAL PRODUCTION!!!





P/s: OHHHH...I so love the FAT boy....He is the cutest!!

2012 - My Reading List and other plans

This year I've decided to limit the number of books that I read for the year to a grand number *drum rolls* of FIFTEEN. 

The problem is not that I don't read enough but rather I tend to get too carried away and then find myself  spending ALL my time reading some novel when I should be doing a whole lot of other things. 

Considering that I only have 11 months to renew my PMP certificate (among a rather long list of new year resolutions), I really need to start getting more discipline into my reading habits.

Alas! Barely 26 hours into the new year and I have already planned out the next 3 books to read starting with...... 

THE VERY IMPORTANT BOOK

P/s: I fully intend to read this book with an open mind. I believe our respected leader has got something to say to us so LISTEN UP!!

Sherlock Holmes - Game of Shadows

Firstly, a very HAPPY NEW YEAR to one and all.  :D

I'm writing this in the wee hours of the morning so I'm not expecting to be checking my post (yes, the grammatical errors, if any, will be here to stay).

Updates first: (or rather the top 3 Yays for me)
1. As you probably know, I've since relocated back to Singapore so there is absolutely no pressure for me to head to the airport this year to get back to Taiwan after the new year celebrations. Yay!!!
2. January 1st is a SUNDAY  and tomorrow is a public holiday for us in Singapore. Double Yay!!
3. I've met most of my 2011 resolutions (so we are good on that account). Now on to 2012. Triple Yay!

So what did you do for the first day of the year? 

As for me, I spent most of the day sleeping in. When I finally decided to get my act together, I headed out to Downtown East for an extremely late lunch (or rather early dinner). We had Mr Chicken Rice (supposedly opened by one of the chefs from the famous Chatterbox outlet) and that was pretty good and rather reasonably priced. So, check it out if you are within the vicinity. :)

The main topic of this blog is, however, about the movie we watched "Sherlock Holmes - Games of Shadows." I might first add that I was rather looking forward to catching this movie. I thought that the first Sherlock Holmes movie was quite interesting and I really didn't mind catching Jude Law in his rather sexy English accent. Alas, it was not meant to be.

To put it mildly, I found the show extremely draggy. Perhaps, I was simply not in the mood today (after sleeping so much) but I swear that every fight scene was put into slow motion and repeated twice. (once in Sherlock Holmes' head and then the actual fight scene with minor modifications.) I can't remember the last time that I actually fell asleep during a movie but I must have nodded off at least 3 times (or more) during the show. That's simply quite horrid by my standards. I actually turned to KL and asked: " Do you think the show will be ending any time soon?" and was perfectly happy when they started showing the credits.

OMG!! FINALLY!!

Perhaps not everyone feels the same way about this movie so if you think I'm missing the whole point of the show, please do let me know. :)

Meanwhile, here is the official trailer for you to decide if you haven't actually caught it.






And yes, Mr Guy Ritchie....I know Sherlock Holmes is brilliant and rather eccentric but don't you think that the movie might have been OVER EMPHASIZING it a little too much?!?