Hello 2013, Goodbye 2012

It's new year's eve, so thought I'd get this out of the way and start thinking about my 2013 resolutions and how I should try harder to achieve them.

2012 hasn't been as fantastic as I'd hoped. But there were things to cheer about nonetheless.

Here was last year's review.

Without boring everyone with further specifics,here is this year's resolution review:

1) Eat more healthily PASS
I managed to reduce my cholesterol level this year. While it's still high, it is something to cheer about. All the weekly football sessions have helped. Hopefully I can continue to work on that. Plus mega cut down on alcohol too.

2) Exercise more PASS
As mentioned above, two football sessions a week paid dividends. Sadly that has stopped for the time being. I'm hoping it resumes after the new year.

3) Double savings FAIL
This is definitely one of the low points of the year. I not only didn't double my savings, I might have not saved anything at all. Don't get me started.

4) Spend more time with family PASS
This one was commendable. Regular heavy alcohol consumption is at a standstill (something I'm actually quite proud of), and if I'm not at work I'm on my way home. Time spent on the kids and family has gone up. Hopefully that leads to good things.

5) Spend more time with friends FAIL
It's not even about being selective anymore. There is hardly any time for that these days when you have two kids in the house and your work requires that you travel so often. Moreover with kids the conversations also start to turn segregated. There are singles/married no kids/married with kids conversations these days. People definitely look left out. I'll definitely need to work on this aspect if I'm to salvage some of the friendships I think I'm losing.

6) Trade with more discipline FAIL
EPIC FAIL this one. Maybe I should just stop trading altogether. This will not feature in 2013 resolutions!

So as we move into the new year, I'm wishing everyone good health, wealth and prosperity! Treasure all your loved ones and spend more time with them!

Resolutions 2013 coming up next!

My Bumblebee

Bought this to play in office :)

Transformers these days are much harder to transform than those that I owned as a kid!

USDJPY Surge

With the incoming Premier, Shinzo Abe, of Japan declaring war on the over-valued Yen, USDJPY has surged relentlessly.

Till now? Nice channel.

Let's waiting and see.

Star Sign Ahead Again

Wow last week's Sunday Times star sign advice was really accurate. Thought I'd post this week's as well.

People are listening to you, so tell them what they need to hear. Your energy is just right for pushing the envelope and guiding people towards new beginnings.

Thailand 1 Singapore 0

What's wrong with the above score?

Well Thailand won the battle but lost the war! Singapore had won 3-1 in the first leg at home.

And Singapore are now 4 times AFF Cup champions, winning 3-2 on aggregated!!! 1st nation to win it 4 times! Am so proud of our boys!

Sadly I had to miss the match due to a friend's wedding, but maybe it was a good thing, given that it was 90mins of heart attacks. Thailand attacked with wave after wave from the onset till the dying end to no avail.

Luckily, my dream that we would lose 0-2 did not materialize.

So what now Lions?

With head coach Avramovic quitting, it will be interesting to see who takes over.

Hopefully this success can lead to more successes at an even higher level like the Asian Cup!

Go Lions go!!!

Well Done

"There is no room for criticism on the training field. For a player - and for any human being - there is nothing better than hearing 'well done'. Those are the two best words ever invented in sports. You don't need to use superlatives."

- Sir Alex Ferguson

Singapore 3 Thailand 1

Wow.

What an amazing game from our own boys at the Jalan Besar Stadium tonight.

We played really well, were very tight and disciplined, and kept the Thais at bay.

Goals from Mustafic Fahruddin, Khairul Amri and Baihakki means that we have one hand on the trophy!

Special mention to Izwan Mahbud and Shaiful Esah for very good individual performances ! Izwan made several great saves while Shaiful's freekicks and corners were really deadly! Our defenders also performed admirably tonight.

Now all we need is to weather the 2nd leg storm this Saturday in Bangkok. And we will hopefully bring home the AFF Suzuki Cup for a historic 4th time!

Go Lions go!!!

Star Sign Update

Like no effect leh.

I 忍 liao, think liao and wait liao, but things only seem to be procrastinating instead of getting solved.

Perhaps tomorrow I will take a wee bit of action and give things a little nudge.

See if anything will happen.

Sigh.

Star Sign Week Ahead

When things start to get uncomfortable later - and they will - make sure you think it all through before reacting. You can turn this situation to your advantage if you see the angle.

How coincidentally precise? Or pinch of salt?

Manchester United 3 Sunderland 1

What a routine win last night. Goals from RVP, Cleverly and Rooney sealed it.

1. Not sure why the SAF love affair with Phil Jones, but he sure isn't a better RB than Rafael. He may be good with his headers but his basic duties like keeping out crosses and defence need to be improved.

2. Smalling and Ferdinand as CBs were quite good. It's a good thing we now have CBs in abundance with Vidic back and Evans returning.

3. Evra was Evra. Not super but good enough.

4. We paired Carrick and Cleverly in the first half yesterday and they do look like the best two-man combo we have. Cleverly is getting better and better with the games he gets, and ended up with a goal to his name too. Scholes and Giggs came on later and they shored the game up. Always nice to see them on the pitch, but hopefully they don't start games anymore. They simply don't have the pace to last 90 minutes.

5. Young started yet again. Once more I was impressed by his work rate and discipline. He must be doing something right in training. The best example was the first goal when he had an opportunity to dive but instead weathered the tackles in the penalty area to cross for RVP. Hope he keeps this up.

6. Tony V was coming off his second game back from injury and while he's still a tad rusty, he was definitely improving with more game time. He needs to use his strength to his advantage more often.

7. Rooney was not at his best, but still was good enough to get a goal and run all over the pitch. Still one of our linchpins. Nuff said.

8. How much more superlatives can you heap on RVP? The guy is a United legend in the making. Hopefully he keeps his goals coming. His partnership with Rooney is one of the strongest I've seen. Could've had a hat-trick last night.

9. When Vidic came on in the 67th minute, I honestly thought it was a tad early. Predictably Sunderland took advantage of his rustiness to pump in more crosses into our box. That resulted in the conceded goal which was such a waste.

10. I thought DDG had a good game aside from having to concede that goal. He looked good reflex-wise, and dealt with most crosses quite ably. Hopefully he will be our permanent number one.

A good but predictable win. Hopefully we can keep this winning streak for a longer period than the last one.

Towards #20!

GGMU!!!

Jersey Boys

Stole a few hours out with the wifey to watch the latest musical in town, Jersey Boys.

A simple story about Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons, with alot of their hit songs peppered throughout. They had hits like 'Sherry', 'Beggin'', 'Big Girls Don't Cry', 'Can't Take My Eyes Off You' and 'December 1963 (Oh What A Night!)' just to name a few.

I was actually surprised by the number of songs I actually know! We ended up buying the musical CD afterthat too.

Also MBS currently has a seat upgrade promo meaning you pay one tier less for the seats you want! We were wondering if that was due to poor sales.

The 2pm matinee only had a theatre that was half full. Definitely a joy to watch nonetheless, and very enjoyable even for the younger generation.

Four and a half stars upon five!

Singapore 1 Philippines 0

We are in to the finals of the AFF Suzuki Cup! Whoot!

It wasn't pretty and we missed a host of chances, but we managed to squeeze past the finish line thanks to Khairul Amri's 19th minute strike.

Somehow we were really dominant in the first half and even in the early part of the second half, but after the 60th minute, we looked like we were defending for our lives. Definitely can work on our composure. But the boys definitely were heroes last night.

Props to Duric, Mustafic Fahruddin, Khairul Amri, Izwan Mabud, Bennett, Baihakki, and of course our talisman Shahril Ishak.

Our opponents will be either Thailand or Malaysia with the 2nd leg of their semifinal played tonight. Either opponent will be tough. Plus we play the first leg at home, meaning there's likely going to be alot of intimidation tactics played by our eventual opponents. Already Malaysia is complaining about foul play leading up to their match in Bangkok when they have only been given a 'padi field' to practice on.

Singapore never intimidates its opponents because we are very fair, everything also by the book. But also Singaporeans can't be bothered wasting their precious time heckling opponents. They rather heckle the gahmen. Even our current stadium capacity is only 7,500 pax. How intimidating can that be?!

We've never lost in the finals before, having won the AFF Cup 3 times. So hopefully we will make it a fourth time this year!

Go Lions go!

Snakefish No More

My long surviving Snakefish has finally kicked the bucket.

Poor chap. One of the final four survivors in my moonscape fish tank. And then there were three.

Down to my two hardcore SAEs (Siamese Algae Eaters) and one lonely Zebra snail.

Time to find some additions!

Manchester City 2 Manchester United 3

What a game! I'm still buzzing even though it's the morning after.

We won thanks to Rooney's two goals and a sweet freekick by van Persie in the 91st minute, after City came back from two goals down.

1. Let's start with the central defence. We had Rio and Evans starting off and they are proving to be a pretty good partnership in spite of all the goals shipped in early this season. Evans in particular has turned in very consistently good performances. Plus he helps out with the midfield passing. Pity that he had to come off injured at the start of the second half. Smalling replaced and he looked pretty capable as well.

2. Once again our most reliable LB and RB showed their goods. Both played excellently with Rafael once again excelling in his partnership with Tony V. They are devastating on the left flank almost all the time. Evra has also been in good form lately, although their downside is the lack of height, which sucks when defending set pieces.

3. It was quite a surprise when the lineup was announced and Tony V was in there. I don't think many people expected it given that SAF ruled him out of the derby due to injury. Another masterstroke. He still looked rusty but was good enough to create several good chances. Got injured though and was replaced by Jones.

4. I know I've slated him all season, but when credit is due I will raise my hand and tell it like it was. Young was simply terrific last night. Gone was his headless-chicken movement and lack of defending weaknesses. He seemed to be at the right places most times and was definitely more attuned to helping Evra out with both attack and defence. A joy to watch. Hopefully he keeps this up, and work on his crossing.

5. Today we used the Carrick and Cleverly midfield. It was really good at stifling Yaya Toure, Nasri and David Silva. Cleverly in particular was outstanding, playing the midfield destroyer role to perfection, while helping bridge the midfield and attack. Carrick was usual reliable Carrick. Most consistent player for the last few years for us. We should use this partnership more often. Welbz was in for Clevs late on.

6. Up front Rooney was a beast. He seems to reserve his best form for the big games. Scoring two goals was just the tip of his prowess. He was literally running up and down chipping in in every department. Probably my choice for MOTM last night.

7. RVP stole the limelight from Rooney although he didn't have as much of a talismanic effect for the first 89 minutes, he finally came to when it mattered. He also had a shot rattling off the crossbar to boot. Glad he's with us rather than City. How different things would've been had he chose to join them at the start of the season.

8. Finally de Gea. Amid all that speculation about a January bid for Stoke's Asmir Begovic, I think we should just confirm DDG as our no.1 and keep it as that. The boy is young but we have seen so much improvement in him. Plus when he's on form he really keeps everything out!

9. To say tonight's match was eventful is a gross understatement. Apart from the end-to-end good football, there was a good goal by Young chalked off for offside, a penalty shout by Evra, Samir Nasri showing his handbag move, the coin-throwing incident on Rio and of course Tevez's petulant kick on Jones. This game really lived up to its top billing.

10. 6 points clear at the top and this was one of our best performances yet. But it's still early in the season so we can't take anything for granted. Hopefully we don't slacken after such a performance, which we have a tendency to. Let's go win #20!

GGMU!!!

HFMD

The boy has gotten HFMD. It's the real thing this time after a brief scare last week.

Last week we spotted 3 visible ulcers on his tongue but little else that were signs of HFMD. The doctor said he couldn't give a confirmed diagnosis as such. The ulcers went away after 3 days and we heaved a sigh of relief thinking we escaped with a simple viral scare.

Then on Friday this week he developed high fever after an afternoon nap. He had shown no signs prior. The doctor also said he had ulcers in his throat. Saturday he developed rashes all over his body and his palms and feet. While there're no visible bumps, the rashes we're symptomatic.

Thankfully he's having a good appetite and is still active inspite of all this.

Hope he gets well soon.

The Glass Half Full

Sometimes the power of thinking positive makes such an acute difference to the way we react to the situations that abound our everyday lives.

Instead of thinking 'if only', or curse at your rotten luck, gives thanks to what you already have around you and slowly but clearly, count your blessings instead.

We all have so much to be thankful for.

VGMC - A Ponzi Scam? III

After locking out everyone's funds, now they convert almost all holdings into Options, and then require you to pay for converting Options to Shares?! OMG, what a brilliant way to secure even more funds from the unsuspecting masses!

Options Conversion Summary

Options can be converted to shares following the below procedures.
1. Login to your shareholder account.
2. Go to “Convert Options to Shares” and key in the number of Options that you intend to convert to shares.
3. Upon confirmation, a Client Trust account will be designated for you to execute your payment.
4. Make the payment to the designated Client Trust account as soon as possible. May sure to include 50 – 100 USD extra for bank charges.
5. Payment has to be received within 14 days from application date, or else application will be closed. Shareholder will need to make a new application (possibly at a different exercise price) once an application is closed.
6. Once payment received, we will convert your Options to AGMAC common shares.

Options Frequently Asked Questions:
1. What is an Option?
An Option in AGMAC is a result of Convertible Preferred Shares (CPS) – GOLD conversion. Each 1000 CPS-GOLD is been converted to become 1 AGMAC share plus 1,000 Options.
2. How can a shareholder exercise his/her Option?
By paying 50% of price difference between current AGMAC NAV per share minus USD1.70 (closing price for CPS-GOLD)
For example:
AGMAC NAV per share value = USD3.86
You want to exercise 1,000 Options.
You need to pay = 1,000 x 50% (USD3.86 – USD1.70)
= 1,000 x 50% (USD2.16)
= 1,000 x USD1.08
= USD1,080
3. Are Options and shares freely transferable among shareholders?
Yes, there is a window of 5-7 working days before the administrator will approve your request pending any objection.
4. Can I exercise partial of my allocated Options?
Yes, minimum Option conversion is 1000 units.
5. What will happen if I did not exercise all or part of my Options by the time AGMAC is listed?
A final decision has yet been made. Options may be extended post-listing or Options holders may be qualified for “Voluntary Asset Distribution” for non-listed asset of the company by the time AGMAC is listed.
6. Can Options and/or Share be sold to a 3rd party?
No, AGMAC is a Closed-End fund; therefore Shares and Options cannot be sold to any 3rd party but can be transferred to another shareholder.
7. When can I start to exercise my Options?
Options may be converted by shareholders to common AGMAC shares effective January 2013.

Reading 3 Manchester United 4

Whether you want to call it a disastrous defensive display or a superb offensive one, it's still 3pts in the bag.

1. As SAF also agreed, this must be one of our worst defensive performances of the season. All three goals we gave up were really soft, two coming from corners. Where was the marking? We have to stop leaking goals like that.

2. The biggest culprit was probably Rio Ferdinand, who was having a surprisingly anonymous game. Hardly saw any of the ball, and nowhere close to being able to attack the ball when their goals were scored. Age is catching up with him.

3. Rafael was another big culprit although he was rightly substituted for Smalling very early on, likely due to his rash yellow card. He looked absolutely dismayed, but it was right thing to do. He seemed to be dominated by Reading's winger up until then.

4. Although I felt Evans and Evra had decent games, they also made mistakes and were slow to react in the lead up to those goals. However Evans, in particular put in another very good shift helping bridge the midfield and the defense, even helping to get us a penalty. Evra also looked like a stand-in winger at times. But he definitely has zero chemistry with Young.

5. This week's midfield of Carrick, Fletcher and Ando seemed quite formidable (apart from those goals), but we lost Ando to a hamstring injury, and one suspects Fletcher is still not good enough. In the end, just like any Man U midfield combo this season, they didn't impress enough. Probably Carrick-Scholes-Fletcher will be the combo for our next game.

6. Speaking of Ando's hamstring tweak, it's really unfortunate. The boy is currently having another good run of games and then he gets injured. Again. You have to wonder how much patience SAF has left on the boy. Its happened so many times. Scored a beauty for our first equalizer.

7. At least something we didn't have to worry about was the form of both our starting strikers, Rooney and RVP. Rooney still doesn't look 100%, but his work rate is far better than anyone else right now. RVP looks rusty somehow, but glad he got a goal, and should have gotten one more that was wrongly disallowed.

8. Once again, for the millionth time, I have no idea what Young was out there for. Maybe it was to add width but he seriously sucks. Whether he had the ball or not, he was always less than impressive. I wish we had better options on the wings but now we only have him. Still I think even Welbeck on the wing is better.

9. Lindegaard definitely couldn't have done much about all 3 goals that were scored. But somehow he doesn't look at good or secure as what I think De Gea could have been. There's something about his positioning that seems to affect our own defence. Can't wait for DDG to get back in the fold.

10. Our subs weren't spectacular but did their jobs. Smalling can't pass for nuts, but defends quite solidly especially in the air. Great to see Phil Jones back. He showed some skill and like Smalling, adds to a more solid defence, even when he's in midfield. Hope he gets a good run of games to come. Welbeck looked lost after coming on for RVP. Plus his standard industry seemed missing. He better start taking his chances else he's gonna get stuck in the pecking order.

A win is still a win, but it's the 10th time we've had to come from behind in the league. That speaks volumes about our defence which we really need to address. Still, 3pts clear at the top of the league with Shitty to play next weekend, we can't really ask for more, especially when we've already lost 3 matches compared to Shitty having not lost a game yet. Hope we beat them next week!

GGMU!!!

I Also Can

This photograph cost me $250.

Bought during a charity auction during one of my now-famous over-enthusiastic drunken stupors.

Of course they always load you up with tons of alcohol before the auction!

Then I was at the Singapore Arts & Science Museum the other day and look what I managed to capture!

Hurhur.

Well at least it's for a good cause!

December

Yay to December's arrival! The month when the world is supposed to end!

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/2012_phenomenon

Can't wait for Christmas and 2013!

Movember 30th

Finally!

I think it's been a good campaign.

Maybe due to the messy look, or just looking plain ugly, or chee ko pek, it got people asking about why I was keeping all that hair.

I got the chance to not only explain what this campaign was all about and some even donated money to the cause!

Till next year!

Movember 29th

It's almost over.

Shaving/plucking it all off on Saturday.

Malaysia 0 Singapore 3

A fantastic result at the opening match of the AFF Suzuki Cup 2012! This ranks as one of our best against our neighbours. A precious away win in Malaysia at that!

Two goals from Shahril Ishak and one from our golden oldie, Aleksander Duric, settled the game. Somemore we played pretty good football.

Next up, Indonesia!

Go Lions go!

Movember 25th

Gosh. It looks hideous!

It's alive!

Manchester United 3 QPR 1

For the 9th game this season, we've come from behind to win. Moreover last night we looked really lackluster and sloppy, particularly in the first half. Still a win is a win. As long as the goals get banged in, we'll hopefully see #20 come season's end.

1. Let's start with the keeper, Lindegaard, for once. I really like him. Ever since his "I'm not here to pick my nose" comment, which showed his ambitions, he has turned in pretty good performances rivaling that of De Gea's. However last night he made one poor save which resulted in QPR's goal. Plus one has the sneaky suspicion that he's not as agile as De Gea, especially the few times he seemed rooted by QPR's off target goal attempts. Still he's a pretty capable no2 IMHO.

2. Our defence was not having a very good night either, bar Johnny Evans, who had a monster of a game. While Evra, Rafael and Ferdinand had their share of slips, mistakes and sloppy passes, Evans was truly a rock. If he keeps this up, it is likely Vidic will have to replace Rio if he is to come back into the squad. Plus he scored the equalizer to boot.

3. Last week we lost to Norwich and our pedestrian style of play was largely attributed to the old legs of Giggsy. This week, Scholes showed himself no different. Lacking in pace and cutting edge, the first half performance was perfectly summed up when he was substituted in the 58th minute. I still love him though. A true legend. But like Giggs, he is definitely more suited as an impact sub at the ripe old age of 38.

4. His midfield counterpart was a surprising addition in Darren Fletcher. I really love the guy for his determination and he has shown that his bowel codition has been managed. What a performance in the middle (not perfect but very good) with a goal to boot! You almost felt like he really deserved so much more of this after all he's been through.

5. In the wings was where we really disappointed last night. Once again for the umpteenth time I have to state categorically that Ashley Young IS NOT MAN U CALIBRE. And he showed it once again. Poor crosses, lousy skills, puzzling movement, and one attempted dive, this guy is infuriating. We need a new winger come January. This guy cannot play properly and with Nani due to be shipped out due to his contractual problems, we're kind of narrow on options.

6. Which led to Welbeck playing on the right side even though it's not his natural position. I love the kiddo for brig Manchester born and bred, but he definitely had a game to forget last night. Without Valencia, we now have no proper wingers.

7. Our forwards had mixed games. Rooney was Rooney. Even at 70% performance he would still be better than most everyone else on the pitch. And that's what he showed. Clearly rusty, he made it up with his incessant running ad tracking back. Still glad he's with us after that 2010 fiasco. RVP had a rather forgettable game for the 2nd time in as many. By the time we were winning, he looked like he might've been trying too hard to get on the scoresheet. Hopefully he bangs them in soon. And at least his crosses are fucking good and consistent!

8. This was another game where Fergie's masterstroke was in identifying the correct weak spots and amending them fast. Enter Chicharito and Ando in the 58th minute, both with alot to prove, they literally changed the entire tempo of our game. Suddenly, we were a joy to watch again, attacking and countering with every opportunity we had. And they both combined to score the 3rd goal as well! We also saw glimpses of young Nick Powell's midfield prowess.

9. Considering that on Friday a stature of SAF was unveiled, there was no way we could lose this game, which would have been our 3rd loss in a row (something unheard of). Fergie's been managing the club for 26 years now and has brought us so much success. It is an apt tribute that he has a section of Old Trafford named after him plus now this statue. Probably will have his own road when he finally retires too. Yesterday we saw so many past players in attendance too. What a legend.

10. So we're top of the league again, while City play Chelski today. Hopefully they will draw that game. As long as we keep banging in the goals, I don't mind coming from behind all season. Looking forward to #20 and Champions League success this season!

GGMU!!!

Norwich 1 Manchester United 0

We lost our 3rd league game yesterday and dropped to 2nd in the league. Overall it was a poor game we played. Staying up at 1.30am to catch the match was quite a waste of precious sleep.

1. Well we didn't play particularly calamitously or horrendously, but there was surely a lack of activity, urgency and attacking verve in our game. Maybe you can blame the away trip and Norwich's resolute defending, but given our midweek Champions League game is not important anymore since we top the group, it was surprising that the players didn't give more effort to getting a win.

2. I've said this dozens of times and I'll say it again. Ashley Young is not good enough to play for us. He's just hopelessly frustrating in that he runs around not looking like he knows what he's doing. His crosses are about the worst I've seen of our players, and he has no chemistry with Evra, often failing to help him cover his defensive duties. I still can't decide if him or Nani is more frustrating to watch, but at least Nani has the skills to dazzle once in a while and can be unpredictable in a good sort of way. We need another good winger come January.

3. Our back four were pretty ok but this was another game where Rio and Evra looked exposed. Smalling has just returned from injury so he's obviously not at 100%. Only Rafael was playing well last night.

4. But its no use to play that flank well when the other half doesn't show up. Valencia looked a shadow of the player he is, very hesitant and confused all night. Even though we seemed to float every pass to him in the first half, he seemed to dally too long and thus never got much of an advantage over the defenders. Rightly subbed for Scholes.

5. The midfield with Carrick and Giggs also doesn't seem to work. Gone are Giggs' pace and passing ability. And Carrick is, well, Carrick. Hardly ever a risky forward pass from him, but reliable as ever. They're both so old now that it's not surprising that younger opponents tend to outrun them all the time. The best combo so far is a Cleverly-Carrick combo IMHO.

6. Games like these when the opposition hunker down and defend like their lives depended on it, we needed guys like Cleverley, Kagawa and Rooney. More inciteful passing and attacking of the ball. Clevs was on the bench while the other two were injured. Plus Chicharito coming off the bench would have been nice.

7. Hernandez picked himself last week with a hat-trick, but this week further cemented his impact sub status. He started the game and hardly had a touch on the ball. It's back to the bench once Rooney comes back. Rightly subbed for Welbz.

8. RVP also had an anonymous game. Definitely didn't turn up last night. He had two good chances but he fucked them up with air shots. He's bailed us out so many times that maybe we're too used to him scoring. The defender man-marking him definitely did a great job. Still at least his crosses looked more deadly, unlike you know who.

9. De Gea had a wisdom tooth problem so 'not here to pick my nose' Lindegaard stood in. I thought he was reliable and their wonder goal he definitely could do nothing about. Dealt with just about everything else pretty comfortably.

10. Subs Scholes, Ando and Welbeck weren't impact enough although Welbz had a few half chances that went close. I love that boy for his determination but he's still got lotsa work to do on his finishing. Ando didn't make a difference coming on.

So, a sucky blip after a 5-game winning streak. Can't say much abit the loss because credit to Norwich, they played a good game and thoroughly deserved the victory. But it doesn't look like a big issue yet.

Next weekend QPR at home at OT. Time to get old boy Mark Hughes the sack!

Also it's awesome knowing there're lotsa other Man U fans in Singapore (even in the US) staying up late and watching the game last night. We may all have been disappointed, but UNITED we stand!

Looking forward to #20!!!

GGMU!!!

Been There Done Dad

Experienced it all.

Pentagon Advice

You never write when you can talk;
You never talk when you can nod;
You never nod when you can wink.

Be safe.

Movember 14th

Two things I'm coming to learn about myself:

1. The 'mo defies gravity.
2. I look like I ate porcupine skin.

Good cause, good cause. Sigh.

Obama Wins!

Barack Obama has won another term in the White House.

I guess I'm happy.

Watching the elections on Bloomberg at home on a lazy afternoon was quite exciting.

Nothing much that would impact us international folk other than continuity in the US's foreign policies, cheap Dollars and possibly a greater push for peace globally.

Romney would probably have been a warmonger IMHO, but I think what finally lost him the vote were his "47%" comment and his lack of specifics as to carrying out his policies during the 2nd and 3rd debates.

Movember 6th

Argh. It's starting to look patchy. Like this is the maximum length it's gonna grow. Just hope it doesn't look too unsightly. Plus it's only the beginning of the month!

Damn I gotta huge nose!

Manchester United 2 Arsenal 1

One goal in each half from RVP and Evra secured a comfortable 3pts. Top of the table for the next two hours at least!

1. Missed the opening 15mins of the game. But if it was like the other 75, then I didn't miss much. Overall it wasn't a poor game nor was it very exciting. It might have been because we were playing Arsenal so we weren't so confident going forward.

2. Our defenders had a very good game today. Ferdinand and Evans were decent, Rafael was lively as usual and Evra had one of his better games, with a goal to top it off.

3. It's once again our midfield that had problems. I can't really complain about the Carrick and Cleverly midfield pairing because they largely kept the Arsenal midfield in check. But they weren't brilliant, with alot of misplaced passes and Cleverly slowly disappeared from the game as it wore on, rightly replaced by Ando afterthat.

4. The wingers weren't much better. Ashley Young is crap. I've said this many times before but he really possesses more clumsy feet than skill. Valencia had an off-day even though it couldn't have been worse than Young, so I'm perplexed at the decision to substitute Tony V with Nani. Moreover he was getting the better of Santos all afternoon. Young just sucked. All game.

5. Rooney played in the attacking midfielder role right behind RVP and he did it really well. Was also very willing to drop deep to help shore up the middle. The only disappointment was his missed penalty which would've calmed some nerves.

6. RVP has reached 10 goals in 13 games. That's an amazing stat and the manner with which he scored was amazing. All he needed was one chance and one touch. Keeper had no chance.

7. De Gea hardly had much work to do. I only remember one save he had to make all of the second half, but with virtually the last kick of the game Cazorla curled a beauty which he could do little about. A fairly good game he had otherwise.

8. For a home game I had expected Man U to be more enterprising and attack-minded. We also had the bulk of the chances but didn't really capitalize on many of them. Thankfully Jack Wilshere was red-carded. The guy was gonna hurt someone soon.

9. Did anyone notice how many yellow cards were shown? It must have been a record.

10. Onwards we go! That's two tough fixtures we've won back-to-back now. Hopefully we'll continue our winning streak. I think we need to sell Nani and buy another winger to replace Young next January.

GGMU!!!

Movember 2nd

So...

How's this for a start?

Movember

Guess what? It's Movember!

No I didn't spell it wrong. It's time to grow a mustache for a good cause.

Read all about it here!

Just the thought of a month-long unshaven face is scary enough! Luckily Halloween is over!

If you're interested to donate to the Movember cause, email or drop me a comment!

Another One Rides The Bus

Always sad to see old friends go.

There's this feeling like I don't want to be the last to leave.

There's this feeling like another batch of fond memories have been detached and archived from this chapter of my life.

There's this feeling like the tide of new is finally overlapping the tide of old.

There's this feeling like the fun we had is slowly but surely disappearing.

There's this feeling like everyone is moving on with their lives.

Sigh.

Rooney

Rooney!

Now I've bought the whole card collector's album!

GGMU!!!

Manchester United 4 Stoke City 2

A win is a win as I always say. Even if we played poorly. 3pts in the bag is always better than one or none.

1. Overall I thought we had a so-so game, but I guess we can use last week's internationals as a hangover excuse. Didn't feel all that pumped especially with Chelsea and Man City winning their games as well.

2. Our back four of Ferdinand, Evans, Evra and Rafael look like its the set four this season. They didn't have a bad game, but those two goals conceded really should not have been.

3. Rafael in particular looks to be going from strength to strength making the RB position his own. And definitely one of the few who consistently plays with urgency and a seeming want to go for more goals.

4. We started with Carrick and Scholes again and to be honest, while Scholes is pure legend, he can't be relied on for 90mins nor to start games. We saw that when he put himself in potential card trouble with 3 rash tackles. Still his passing and vision are unparalleled. Carrick is just Carrick. Sideways, backwards, short forward passes, reliable as always, if not unspectacular. We still need him to stabilize the midfield.

5. In the wings we had Welbeck and Tony V, both of whom were the poorer performers today IMHO. Valencia just hardly showed up, while Welbz really needs to work on his finishing. But at least he has very good energy and his header was sublime (even if it took 10 tries). Both were substituted to no surprise.

6. Rooney was having a hangover surely. But a 50% Rooney is still better than most anyone in the league. He lacked urgency, had quite alot of stray passes, plus his first own goal, but he made it all up with his finishing and a few sublime touches. How can you leave him out like that?

7. RVP is the man to count on when you need the goals. I think it's 8 goals in 7 games now. The guy is just one crazy scorer that is proving his enormous price tag is a bargain in disguise. Instinct is preciously in short supply in the league and this guy is oozing it. Could've scored more if he weren't such a team player.

8. Lastly we had De Gea in goal and he really kept us in the game. I thought against Stoke Lindegaard might've been a better option, but DDG, while looking uncertain as times, made up for it with several instinctive saves. He looks ripe to be our no1 shot-stopper. We'll need him against Chelsea away.

9. Substitute-wise nothing much to mention other than Nani, Ando and Hernandez getting a runout. Next up is Chelski at Stamford Bridge. Last season we came back from 3-0 down to draw 3-3. Looking at Chelski's amazing frontline, I'm not very confident we will come away with any points. But still we must believe. They crushed Spurs away 4-2 last night with Oscar, Hazard and Mata in spectacular form. Thankfully they also have Torres.

10. Rio Ferdinand chose not to wear the Kick It Out racism tshirts during warm-up yesterday after SAF said his whole squad would. After the game SAF said he was disappointed and he would deal with him. Hope it does not turn into another Jaap Stam.

We got UCL action with Braga midweek and then Chelski away at the weekend! Hope we win them both!

GGMU!!!

Looping Apps

Hate those iPhone apps that require you to wait for tokens to be generated before you can play again. Am currently addicted to 3 particular apps that are turning into a looping sequence of play that could stretch on forever.

Simpsons Tapped Out
Scramble With Friends
Mousehunt

It's just a matter of playing one of the apps at a time, earn coins/points, then jump to the next app and do the same. Only for Scramble is there real skill involved.

Such a waste of time. And yet I'm addicted! Aiyoh.

In other news, I watched the movie Looper last night which was really good!

VGMC - A Ponzi Scam? II

Taken from one of the more popular forums discussing the scam that is Virgin Gold Mining Corporation (VGMC). A lot of fine examples from bogus sites, fake offices and registrations, lack of company details, to unsubstantiated proof of business etc.

Go read if you're concerned.

Good luck if you're stuck!

VGMC is NOT an "investment." It's an illegal Ponzi scheme that will soon collapse under its own weight. Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Panama have decreed that VGMC is operating illegally.

VGMC IS A SCAM. It has:

- no gold
- no gold mines
- no employees
- no trade memberships
- no investments
- no joint venturers
- no government licenses or permits
- no registration on any stock exchange
- no financial statements
- no private placement memoranda

It conducts NO legitimate business. Its ONLY "business" is to enlist more and more idiots and victims to send it money every week for useless CPS and other non-existent account holdings.

IF YOU HAVE INVESTED IN VGMC, IMMEDIATELY DEMAND A RETURN FROM VGMC AND THE SCAMMER THAT CONVINCED YOU TO "INVEST." THE COMPANY IS NEARING COLLAPSE!
PUBLIC RELEASE

The Superintendencia del Mercado de Valores of the Republic of Panama (hereinafter the “SMV”), in accordance with its legal duty to strengthen and develop the securities market in Panama, in compliance with regulations of the Decree Law No.1 of July 8th of 1999 and its regulation, warns to the public as follows:


The company VIRGIN GOLD MINING CORPORATION, registered in the Public Registry of Panama, under microjacket number 356393 of the Mercantile Section is announcing in VGMC an offering of “Convertible Preferred Stocks”.
The SMV has not authorized the offering of “Convertible Preferred Stocks”, announced to the general public by The company VIRGIN GOLD MINING CORPORATION, therefore the SMV does not approve this offering.
For further information regarding this Release, please contact us by phone at (507) 501-1700, fax (507) 501-1709, or email Esta dirección electrónica esta protegida contra spam bots. Necesita activar JavaScript para visualizarla "> Esta dirección electrónica esta protegida contra spam bots. Necesita activar JavaScript para visualizarla .


Julio Javier Justinian

VGMC - A Ponzi Scam? I

So I thought this was a scam all along, and still went in with my eyes wide open. It was only hoped that I could've gotten out early with some nice gains before the shit hit the fan.

They were incorporated out of Panama, had a vague business model with no details, a phony management team, and offered too-good-to-be-true returns.

Now my funds are stuck (for good perhaps) and I guess I'll have to write it off.

Sadly it's true that old adage that if it's too good to be true, it probably is. If you thought that Geneva gold scam was bad, this is gonna rock someone's socks off. This supposed gold investment actually paid out more than 10% in dividends a month!

From being able to withdraw funds daily, it became weekly, then fortnightly and finally monthly, and now not at all.

On paper, I had already more than doubled my initial investment just 6 months into entering into this alleged scam.

Supposedly our gold shares are now being converted into a fund to be listed on the Danish stock exchange by end 2013.

Haha.

I guess everyone's panicking about their money now. Pity those who bet the whole farm on this scam.

This one guy in the forum claimed to have borrowed RM500,000 from the bank to sink into this rotten egg! Sucks to be him man.

I'll post more updates as and when they release more news of the 'new structure'. Meanwhile if you so unfortunately happen to be a shareholder like me, then better to assume that your investment has been zero-rized.

Hope for the best but expect the worst.

Sobz.

VGMC Website

Kagawa!

Look who I pulled this time!

GGMU!!!

Singtel MioTV Buay Swee

Zoo 2012

Wow, it's changed so much!

It's really alot more tourist and family friendly now. More shelters and better facilities. Really world class.

But thing are quite pricey though as you'd expect with a tourist attraction.

Definitely worth a visit if you haven't been there recently though!

RVP Power Card

Look what I pulled from a single pack I bought at 7-11! $1.50/pack only. Think I'll buy a whole box soon.

GGMU!!!

MRT Circle Line

Harbourfront
Telok Blangah
Labrador Park
Pasir Panjang
Haw Par Villa
Kent Ridge
one-north
Buona Vista
Holland Village
Farrer Road
Botanic Gardens
Caldecott
Marymount
Bishan
Lorong Chuan
Serangoon
Bartley
Tai Seng
MacPherson
Paya Lebar
Dakota
Mountbatten
Stadium
Nicoll Highway
Promenade
Esplanade
Bras Basah
Dhoby Ghaut

Singapore Gangnam Style with Children - Super Kancheong Style

I'm One Lucky Guy

Hard to explain but I really am.

的确是因为你的爱，给我天天充满自信！

I used to wonder what was it in me that made me such a confident person, then I found the reason.

I'm a really lucky guy.

AAPL: The World's Biggest Hedge Fund You Never Knew

This is interesting.

Who would have thought Apple the software company would be so smart as to do this!

Now it makes you wonder how they intend to conquer the world!

Have fun reading!

Manchester United 2 Tottenham Hotspurs 3

Abysmal. That's the best word to describe our first half display.

1. Simply speaking, no one turned up during the first half. The two goals we let in were so soft, even I could've dribbled through the whole United team.
2. I have no idea what's wrong with Ferdinand and Evans at the start, they just didn't want to move or tackle at all.
3. The starting midfield lineup of Giggs, Scholes and Carrick is way too old. Why Tom Cleverly or Ando isn't out there seems like a mystery to me. We were absolutely overrun by TW younger Spurs legs.
4. Poor Lindegaard, all three goals were way beyond him. Can't blame him much.
5. Nani, is a total fuckhead. Brilliant yet frustrating, today he was even worse than the last few games. Sure he scored but it was also his flank that led to all the goals. Absolutely no cover for Rafael. He should not play for United again. Drastic I know, but I hate seeing him on the pitch.
6. Speaking of Rafael, I thought he had a really good game. As with most of this season. Had to cover for the cock Nani and his own RB role.
7. In the second half we really came to life. Rooney replaced Giggs, and suddenly Kagawa and RvP were clicking again. We hit the post twice, had a couple of penalty shouts, and a goal chalked off for offside. Really edge-of-your-seat stuff. Exhilarating. The Rooney substitution was a game-changer.
8. Plus Scholes is a God. God of football. He's just too good and yet sadly he could not win the game alone.
9. In the end out first half performance cost us the game. We played so much better in the second half, if only we could have done that from the start. Yet here was a showcase of how devastating our offence could be if we took the game seriously from the start. Some of our moves were amazing.
10. At this rate we're gonna win fuck shit this season if what's left of our defenders don't wake up their ideas from start till finish.

Just hope SAF does something to address it permanently.

GGMU!!!

How, How, How?

The whole sex-for-business scandal starring former CNB chief Ng Boon Gay and Cecilia Sue is certainly entertaining the whole nation.

Alot of jokes playing around with puns and other contents in her alleged text messages are making its rounds online already.

I think Cecilia should just come clean once and for all about the details of their affair. For better or worse. The truth may hurt, but it will wipe the slate clean and allow her to pick up the pieces and get on with her life.

At this current rate of flip flopping, more sordid details being revealed, she is far worse than Al Gore and John Kerry during their presidential bids. And look where they ended up.

Sooner or later the truth will be revealed. And it will not do her current mental state and family situation any good. Especially with all on Singapore following the case like a good TVB drama. She is already turning into a mini celebrity. Hopefully she can hold it all together.

Wonder if a movie will be made.

Egypt

Once is enough.

In fact, 25hrs in Cairo is enough for me.

Going to Egypt felt like travelling back in time. To the 70s or 80s, when houses were still made of plainly stacked bricks, mud-coloured buildings, cars were still of the model of that era, donkeys and camels were still a real mode of transport, and the general feel of the place is so archaic that one could not help but feel sorry for the state of the city.

Great for history buffs.

Such irony when thousands of years ago Cairo was probably one of the most advanced cities on the planet.

The Great Pyramids of Giza have stood the test of time and are indeed a true wonder of the world. But aside from that, everything else generally disappointed. From the non-existent hospitality of the Egyptians, to the state of city, it's drab landscape, supposed 5-star accommodation, and even the Sphinx which was much smaller than we all thought it would be.

Every neighbourhood looked the same, right out of a CNN news report on middle eastern news. Dusty, dirty, backward and brown.

If this was indicative of what most middle eastern cities looked like, then I guess we know why the region with all the wealth oil money can buy still cannot become a world power. Always a developing economy.

Once is enough.

Liverpool 1 Manchester United 2

Wow, what an exhilarating game. I caught it at a pub in Ulu Sembawang, but what would you know, still populated by tons of Man U fans!

1. Yet again we didn't play very well, particularly in the first half, where I'd blame Nani for the poor overall display.
2. Nani was so bad that he was substituted at halftime with Scholes coming on. Only then was normal service resumed, even if Gerrard scored early in the 2nd half.
3. With Scholes around, I really wasn't very worried because our shape had returned. So grinding out a result would've been a matter of time. And grind we did!
4. Unfortunately I can't pinpoint many players who had an exceptional game. But next to Nani, starting the game with a midfield of Giggs and Carrick was abit suicidal considering their old legs. They weren't terrible, but there was hardly any control in the middle until Scholes came on and Giggs shifted to the left wing. Evra wasn't really up to scratch either, given the significance of this game.
5. Lindergaard had a really good game IMHO. He kept everything out except for Gerrard's goal and was confident in and around his area. Saved a couple of screamers too.
6. Rafael not only scored a wonder goal to equalize for us, he also put in a very good defensive shift. At this rate he's making the LB position his own.
7. Sadly, Kagawa and RVP didn't see much action especially when we struggled during the first half. Thankfully RVP shook of any nerves to score our first penalty out of four tries this season. Kagawa seems to get pushed around alot.
8. Our CDs both Evans and Ferdinand were absolutely rock solid even though there were nervy moments. You'd have to fear for them each time they went down clutching their backs though. It was already a surprise not seeing Vidic starting, so thankfully we pulled through, even if I think one or the other will miss the next game.
9. Credit where credit is due, Liverpool played this game like a Cup Final and were threatening to tear into us early on. Gerrard in particular was rolling back the years, pinging long passes like Scholes. Even after Jonjo Shelvey was red carded, they still played like they had 11 men out there. Although I've got to say that Luis Suarez is a total dick diver! Raheem Sterling is particularly impressive and he's only 17!
10. Given the significance of the game, Hillsborough, Evra and Suarez finally shaking hands, and the whole rivalry altogether, the game was only marred by perhaps a suspect performance by the referee. Still, I cannot complain since most of the decisions went our way!

And so onwards we march!

To #20 this season!

GGMU!!!

The Case For Optimism By Bill Clinton

5 ways the world is getting better all the time.

1) Phones mean freedom
2) Healthy communities prosper
3) Green energy equals good business
4) Women rule
5) The fight for the future is now

Good food for thought.

Enough!

How Smart Is Your Right Foot?

Fact. It works on me!

Saxo Bank 20th Anniversary Party

Held last Saturday in the compounds of the Great Pyramids of Giza, Cairo, Egypt, this was one of the best parties ever!

For one night only, Saxo Bank Group flew all it's employees to one single location for the biggest party of our lives!

You can see we partied in the middle of the desert with the pyramids as our backdrop!

Wayang Ke Mama

Oleh oleh ah ah!

Haha.

This was just this afternoon when Prince Harry and his wife Kate Middleton came to town.

1) This is 3.45pm afternoon sun. Who can bear the heat?
2) Members of public must stand outside the lined barriers, but the wayang stars must pretend to be spontaneous members of public at the play area?
3) Uncle practicing tai chi in traditional kung fu garb?

OMFG! Hilarious.

Buay tahan the wayangness of all this!

La Cage

Trying to make futsal a regular thing these days.

Need as much exercise as I can possibly get, what with my high cholesterol problemo.

Hopefully one intense session a week plus the more leisurely occasional Saturday kickabout would suffice.

This bunch of friends at The Cage really can work me good. Like today when our team kept winning, I was literally on the pitch for about an hour without rest.

It gets really enjoyable when you play with players who play similarly and are more skillful. There is alot less sprinting, alot of passing, and alot of off-the-ball positioning. The running is still intense, just not in one-off spurts that drain the stamina very quickly.

Hope to keep this up regularly.

MacGvyer

Can't beat this. I want one too!

Waku Ghin Prelude

I know I'm lazy.

I wanted to document my whole experience for awhile now but until now haven't got down to it at all.

I'm talking about the wifey's birthday celebration at Waku Ghin!

Will be back with more!

Gangnam Style

Happy Teachers Day

Yesterday I attended my school's SAC meeting and DND.

Met up with a few old teachers who taught or interacted with me some 25yrs ago (that's right!). Among them, my scout teacher Mr Yap who walks with a limp, Mrs John Tan my music teacher, Mrs Anne Chan who never taught me but I knew her somehow, and Mrs Wong, my AVA teacher.

I find it simply amazing these teachers find the motivation to teach in my old school, for so long a time, with little recognition in terms of stellar results while taking in the bullshit from a large portion of children from the lower income families. It can be a very thankless job. Broken homes, parents in jail or on drugs, running away from loan sharks, borderline autism and outright delinquency are common issues these teachers face every day.

I guess that is exactly where the difference in being a teacher and a tutor lies. The tutor tends to be motivated by money (which may not be a bad thing) but the teacher is motivated by the process of actually shaping a child's upbringing and education. A higher order, definitely. And even more so when serving in an academically-poor school (but still a very good school IMHO!).

I stood in admiration yesterday looking at the 50+ dedicated teachers of my old primary school. A mix of young and old, working harmoniously with each other. An even bigger plus was when I raised the point about teachers quitting the school given how demoralizing it could be dealing with such students and the stress it entails. Our school's attrition rate is actually lower than the national average and currently hovering around only 1 resignation a year. Impressive.

Today we celebrate teachers day, not only for the teachers who have taught us, but also the teachers teaching all around the world. Even more so, we celebrate the bond of sharing and mentoring from the people in our lives. Everyone is a teacher in some way or other.

Did I mention all teachers in Singapore get an 8% pay rise this year? Whoot!

Arsenal The Feeder Club

Hahaha...

Perhaps a change of wage structure is necessary.

Buang-ed

First half profits plunge 85% compared to same period last year.

Hardly any bananas left for the monkeys.

Makes me wonder where the dough all went.

The lean times are a'comin.

Sigh.

Manchester United 3 Fulham 2

First home game of the 12/13 season.

RVP, Kagawa and Rafael scored.

1. RVP and Kagawa are pure class. I think our attack is way more potent with them around compared to last season.
2. RVP's equalizer was absolutely sublime. Hopefully there will be many more to come.
3. Rafael is such a frustrating defender in that he defends really poorly and rashly, but his speed and attacking verve brings alot more movement in the game, as he showed today.
4. Tony V was having an awesome 1st half, when everything was sent his way and we reaped the goals. Somehow that stopped in the 2nd half and led to the nervy ending.
5. The partnership of Anderson and Cleverly is also quite frustrating, mainly because Cleverly is brilliant while Ando is shit.
6. The makeshift defence of Carrick and Vidic is another weak point. They're not commanding at set pieces at all, and communication is a problem. Hopefully Evans, who was on the bench, will be ready next match.
7. Which brings me to De Gea, so brilliant 2nd half of last season, and the first game of this season against Everton, he showed alot of nerves like his fears for corners is back. And that led to Fulham's 2nd goal.
8. Ashley Young is shit, nuff said.
9. The injury suffered by Rooney, a very deep gash on his right thigh, is bad. It's gonna keep him out for awhile. Time for Chich and Welbz to step up.
10. The 2nd half was very nervy and if we're gonna play like that for the rest of the season, it's gonna be a rough ride. Nonetheless as long as we win the title, how we play won't matter.

GGMU!!!

My Favourite Lounge

Rest.

Relax.

Recharge.

Powered by Citi.

Bandung 2012

Tucked away in the mountains, this bustling city is 3hrs drive from Jakarta.

My 2nd time here is definitely alot more pleasant since I flew direct instead of taking the arduous drive.

The airport is the shittiest I've seen. Worse than Bali's Denpasar.

Even got a chance to lunch in the hills. Pretty neat.

Temperatures hovering between 25 to 28 degrees, feels like aircon.

Hitler reacts to Robin Van Persie leaving Arsenal for Manchester United

Home

Have I shared this before? Still one of the best NDP songs (this rendition wasn't released on NDP though!) alongside What Do You See by Electrico

Lee Kuan Yew

I have the greatest respect for this guy.

You can say what you wanna say but you cannot take away the fact that he dragged Singapore from a small fishing village into the bustling metropolis it is today.

Seeing him appear on TV during NDP yesterday evening amidst all those vicious rumours the day before of his passing gave me a huge sense of relief and victory. In your face, naysayers!

Even though I've admired him for all that he's done, I felt a strong yearn for his well-being when those rumours were circulating.

We owe it all to him. And people better remember that and cherish his presence while he still stands among us.

Now have some respect please.

To My Dear Friend, Mary Ann

We met when I was doing my Y tour in CCO in Colorado, USA. Along with her husband, Andrew, they were one of the loveliest and most caring couples I've ever known. Not just for themselves but for all the people around them. Truly living the virtues of counselors.

Earlier this month, they lost their 5-yr old son Riley, after a year-long battle with a brain tumour. Upon reading her post of his passing, tears welled up in my eyes. No parent should ever have to endure seeing their child leave the world before them, and even though I know they are trying their best to stay strong, I cannot help but feel sadness and hurt for them.

May the family of Mary Ann, Andrew and Micah stay strong and take good care of themselves. To live out the rest of their lives as best as they can. I'm sure that's what little Riley Degginger would expect.

You can read the journal of Riley's journey here.

God bless.

Standard Chartered PLC

In local context, we always say, "Don't hands itchy!"

Don't catch a falling knife, guys!

Read about the developments here.

Featured

Wah!

My blog was actually featured on The Singapore Daily!

No wonder my readership for the London 2012 post rocketed skyhigh!

Mentos National Night

The Simpsons Tapped Out

Just released new content and an improved reliability version!

Plus I get to start rebuilding once again after wasting so many donuts the dirt time out!

Go download it now!

Awesome fun!

Table Tennis Semis

Singapore is in to the semifinals of the team competition after beating North Korea 3-0!

Now they will face Japan (again) for a shot at the finals.

I think they stand a good chance, although Japan is no pushover. They've got my favourite cutesy star, Ai Fukuhara!

People can complain about Singapore importing FTs all they want, but you look at the trio of Feng Tianwei, Wang Yuegu and Li Jiawei and their commitment to bring glory to Singapore. Just how the haters can constantly keep finding excuses to slam them for being China-born Simply perplexes me.

Not only have they delivered in terms of achievements in the areas they are good at, they have made good and have contributed to the overall talent pool here (think up and coming Isabella Lee).

How long have they been representing us? For eons already! Even Jing Junhong one of the original FTs is currently serving the STTA as an assistant coach! I doubt they'll be going back to China anytime soon.

From 4 editions ago our women's table tennis singles have consistently produced a semifinalist. We had Jing Junhong (1996, 4th), Li Jiawei (2000, 4th), Li Jiawei (2004, 4th), Feng Tianwei (2008, 4th) and this year, the breakthrough by Feng. These girls do us proud.

It's time to celebrate the flag. National Day is coming. Our forefathers were from a foreign land too, so let's not be xenophobic when the people who choose to fly our flag bring glory to our little island. Be proudly Singaporean!

Manchester United IPO

Read this on www.tradingfloor.com

Stay away from the Man U IPO!

Subscribe only if you also bought Facebook at IPO!

National Day Is Coming!

Peek Into The Future

There I was happily eating my own KFC happy meal - happy meant it included fries with cheese - when a family of four sat at the table beside me.

Both parents were PMETs probably in their early 40s while their kids were in secondary school.

All they talked about was school and some upcoming holiday I think the family were going off to.

It looked routine and they didn't look particularly happy. Just another day in office/school I guess.

Then a thought struck me.

That could be me in 10 years time.

Wow.

Think I better try and earn and save as much money as possible while I can.

Sadly, this society that I live in is quite unforgiving if you are poor or of a lower-income bracket.

And if you were in the middle-class as this family looked like, things might not turn out that much better. Especially if you're stuck in the rat race.

But I guess at least they were all together, which is what matters the most.

其实平凡也是一种幸福？

*shrug*

Feng Tianwei

Our current medal hopeful, is in to the semi-finals of the women's table tennis singles.

Hope that she can win her match later at 11pm!

Aside from her, I can't see anyone else winning a medal for Singapore this Olympics.

Maybe the table tennis team round perhaps.

Go Team Singapore!

欠扁问答题 I

Why is Superman's costume so tight?

Answer:

(English) Because he wears size S.

(Mandarin) 因为救人要紧。

London 2012

The start of the Olympics.

Singapore's got it's token representatives as usual, but there are a few that I hope can spring a medal surprise.

Swimmer, Tao Li, is out already after reaching the semi-finals of the

The rest of the swimmers haven't much of a chance. If we're lucky maybe Joseph Schooling could get into the finals.

Our likeliest medal hopes are the ladies playing table tennis. Both in e singles and team events.

Next likeliest would be the women shuttlers. Yes, our Indon-China-turned-citizens pair of Shinta Mulia Sari and Yao Lei.

Lastly are the potential surprises in sailors Colin Cheng and Elizabeth Yin, and shooter, Jasmine Ser. Not likely, but you never know.

Good luck Singapore!

Sakuraya Fish Market

@ Parkway Parade.

Freshest sashimi you can find that won't cost you a bomb.

Nuff said.

AAPL: More Downside

Until the new iPhone is launched, I only see AAPL losing further value.

Now trading at $585.16.

Expect further downside until October (proposed launch date?)

FB @ 23.705

Of the largest IPOs on record, no company has lost so much value so quickly.
~ Bloomberg

Facebook is now at $23.705

AND still nowhere near a Buy yet.

Lucas Moura 2012 Wonder Skills

If this guy is coming to Manchester United as reports suggest, then I can only say that we have an extremely exciting season to look forward to.

Who needs RvP?

Blogger App

I'm such a frog in the well.

Only now did I realise that there was an app for Blogger.

Makes it sooooooooo much easier to update my blog now.

Expect more frequent updates and photo posts!

Whoot!

Preseason

Oh how I've been missing the EPL.

It's great that preseason games have begun.

Manchester United played Amazulu and Ajax Cape Town in South Africa so far. They won 1-0 and drew 1-1 respectively. So far over the two games, there have been some standouts like Jesse Lingard, Davide Petrucci and of course, Shinji Kagawa. Even Berbatov looks pretty sharp.

It's hard to make much of the preseason games this season considering that we are missing out on a host of first team regulars. I do worry that we won't start the season as strongly like in previous years due to this.

Nonetheless I think we have a good chance of winning the league next season, after last season's excruciating last-minute outcome :(

I expect the EPL to be far tougher as well, with Liverpool, Tottenham, Chelsea and Newcastle all looking formidable.

Can't wait for it to start!

Linsanity Moves To Houston

Much have been made of Jeremy Lin's move to Houston, with the Knicks choosing not to match their offer to him last week.

That means I will now be following Houston's games now.

So long New York. Kinda sad to think what might have been if New York instead overhauled the team of aging, over-paid stars like 'Melo, Stoudamire, Chandler and now Jason Kidd even. Rebuild the team around the young guns like Landry Fields, Steve Novak and Jeremy Lin. Oh boy does New York deserve that. Now they will just be another mediocre Eastern Conference team struggling to make the playoffs again.

There was a time when New York was a force to be reckoned with. With stars like Patrick Ewing, John Starks, Charles Oakley and Anthony Mason. Too bad Jordan and the Bulls never gave them a chance.

Anyway now that the Linsanity is moving down to Houston, it's pretty exciting to see who they will surround him with. And I suspect they will go with alot of fresh blood and build a budding team from scratch. Unless of course, they manage to tempt Dwight Howard over. Nonetheless that is a much better strategy. The Rockets might end up struggling next season, but you can be sure Houston will be featured in the press alot more often.

Tribute To Benjamin Ching II

It's still hard to believe that he's left us.

At work, the mood is sombre and solemn.

I have a huge cache of company pictures over almost 6 long years all kept in my computer drive at work. Had wanted to post some of the memorable ones in this post but was advised not to.

All I can do is to try my best to recall the fond memories, even if I'm eternally forgetful.

Here's a list of our significant moments together.

1) Joined the company together in what was the pioneer batch of us salespeople
2) Got promoted to Team Leaders together
3) Travelled together (the four musketeers)
4) Formed the original Saxo Privates golf team
5) Went to India to attend a colleague's wedding
6) Started our partying life in Dragonfly
7) Moved on to Shanghai Dolly
8) Invested together
9) Chill out together
10) Preparing to be his brudder at his wedding

There are many more moments, funnies and fond memories.

We will eventually move on, but the memory of him will forever remain.

I hope he is in a better place now.

Tribute To Benjamin Ching
Tribute To Benjamin Ching III
Tribute To Benjamin Ching IV
Tribute To Benjamin Ching V

Tribute To Benjamin Ching

I would have liked to have come up with something better. And perhaps I will do so in the next couple of days in another post. But the below picture should suffice for now.

While we all mourn Ben's passing, we celebrate the fun and happiness we shared during our time together.

He will be missed.

Tribute To Benjamin Ching II
Tribute To Benjamin Ching III
Tribute To Benjamin Ching IV
Tribute To Benjamin Ching V

Life Is So Fragile

And unpredictable.

Treasure what you have, and spend each day like it could be your last.

Carpe diem. Seize the day.

Make every second count.

See the positive in everything and be thankful for the things you already have.

Treat every setback as a challenge to learn, experience and overcome.

Live life to the fullest.

Remember the old core values of the Y:

Responsibility
Caring
Honesty
Respect

Love your loved ones and friends.