Migrated

Cos Tumblr is so much better.
http://shawnheng.tumblr.com

COMM 2411

Another one bites the dust.
COMM2411 – HD


I can now state with utmost glee: Screw you COMM2411 I just aced your ass!

=)

Wintertime

Lis is going to be done with her exams tomorrow and then it's going to be 4 weeks of bliss before the hustle and bustle of uni life swings back into full gear.

I need to find something constructive to occupy myself with, so far "freelancing" for Peter and Ken don't really count because well, the moolahs aren't coming in. On the other hand, I'm quite interested in the logo for Ken's website… well, the one I created. The one he dictated… not so much lol. I suppose that's part and parcel of a designer's life.

So, iOS 4 huh! Couldn't get my iTunes to connect to the iTunes store so couldn't update my OS from my mac. But managed to update it on Lissy's laptop and oh yeah I'm lovin' it! Really liking the folders although having a limit of 12 apps per folder was a tad irritating, had to remove a couple of apps from my phone but they weren't used at all anyway. On the whole a good OS update!

I'm liking the new trend of carrot top jeans! Check them out I think they look awesome although some might disagree.

This World Cup is one helluva ride! I'm withdrawing my support of Spain and firmly placing it behind Messi and Argentina! And yes, even though my "favourite" team North Korea got their asses handed to them by Portugal, I'm still going to go or Brazil to beat Portugal in their final group match.

Melbourne's getting dangerous. Just yesterday a gunman was loose around the Richmond area which caused a massive police manhunt and disrupted public transport into the city centre. RMIT has taken that into account for candidates who can't make examinations due to the police activity and has allowed for deferment.

That's all for now, hope everybody's having a blast of a holiday!

Revived

This is my first entry from way back in March after the epic skyrun. I was pretty burnt out with uni to be honest so now that I'm done I shall do a quick recap on the past 3 months.

Firstly, I'm back in training for the Run Melbourne half marathon on 18th July! I'm supporting the Australian Cancer Research Foundation by raising funds for them so please help by donating. I know there are lots of other charities I could have picked but I feel that cancer research is a worthy cause and would be extremely beneficial to mankind in the long run. The link below brings you to my fundraising page. I know it's currently at $0 but we've all got to start somewhere.

http://runmelbourne.everydayhero.com.au/shawn_heng

Lots of exciting events happening this year. Going to catch the Australia vs New Zealand game at Etihad Stadium in July, should be one hell of a match! Also, Run Melbourne would be a warm up/tune up for a step-up training culminating in the Mind Alpine Challenge 2011. As you may or may not know, T.O.U.G.H did not finish this year and crashed out at 132km of the 160km race. My goal is to compete in the solo category next year for the 100km race. Yes, it is 60km shorter but this time I'm fending for myself with no team mate. The series of step-up races leading into Mind 2011 would be the Run Melbourne 21km in July, the St George Melbourne Marathon 42.195km in October, the MR25 Ultramarathon in December, and finally the big one next March.

All talk about training so far, let's have some updates on work. 2nd year's been going pretty well for me. Currently waiting on my results for semester 1, and I'm praying to achieve my goal of "nothing below distinction" for this semester. So far I've got 2 HDs and 3 DIs so I'd be quite bummed if a CR or a PA turned up somewhere.

The World Cup season is on! I've been catching matches so far and I'm proud of the asian countries this year, particularly North Korea if you've been following my incessant status updates on facebook. Highly hopeful of them all reaching the knockout stages. The big names have been hugely disappointing so it's time to step up and make history!

Lastly, my mom and Dion are coming over in July! Dion is enlisting in November so this would be a holiday of sorts for him before he errr… becomes a man. LOL!

Cheers and I would most definitely update real soon.

Team T.O.U.G.H dnf @ 132km

Alright, I've given myself one whole week for the entire thing to simmer in the back of my mind and slowly settle in. What now seem like a distant memory did actually happen one week ago strating 4:30am. It was a gargantuan task that we looked to conquer. Here's the skyrun as I've experienced.

It was just about 6 months ago, Yang and Wilson were having one of their trademark post training nutrition when they stumbled upon the Mind Alpine Challenge – a 100 mile ultramarathon in the toughest trails of Australia (note the word "toughest"). So Yang had this crazy brainwave and rang me up, basically going "hey Shawn, we found something crazy to do. Wilson and I are going to do the MAC as a team, we want you to join us." Of course, I went all "what?!? Are you serious?" I let that thought linger and linger in my mind, thinking I've got to be hopping mad to attempt something like this without any prior ultra experience. 100 miles in 48 hours would mean we have to move at a constant pace of 4km/h and get 8 hours worth of rest. Might sound easy but here's the catch – we were ascending peaks, mountains if you will. Not just any mountain, the tallest peak in Victoria! Mt Bogong, Mt Feathertop, Mt Loch, Mt Hotham, and lots in between. Vertical distance covered will be approximately 6000m. It was indeed much more than what I would ever fathom putting myself through. So the thought stayed at the back of my mind, tickling my fancy at the oddest hours, but quite dormant on the whole. The summer break arrived and we all went back to Singapore. The 2009 Standard Chartered Marathon was next on our calendar.

Yang pulled his ITB really bad during the SCSM and was forced to walk more than half the course. Still, we finished. On a side note, SCSM has really become some sort of a cliche run that Singaporeans do, just to get their hands on the finisher tee. There is no more challenge in it, and I'm not saying so just because I've done the MAC. At the end of SCSM 2009, I vowed never to participate in another SCSM again for the simple reason that it wasn't a pure sporting event. an 8 hour finish time is nothing to be proud of but you still get a finisher tee anyway. Simply put, the challenge is gone. Back to the story. Yang pulled his right ITB pretty bad and was forced to the sidelines. Meanwhile, Wilson was calling me up and urging me to commit. The plan was to run as a team of 2 with Yang as our team manager. I gave it some thought and finally committed. I really trust Wilson for several reasons. He is a seasoned adventure racer with many big races under his belt. Ironman, Keen, XPD etc. On top of that, he was an ex commando officer. Now you don't get any crazier than that! So I was looking forward to some crazy training that would get my fat ass back in shape since I've put on quite a bit during the winter. We had all of 3 months in Singapore to train and the very first thing Wilson suggested was to get me signed up for MR25 Ultramarathon.

The MR25 – a trail ultramarathon that was unknown to most Singaporeans purely because this was one for running enthusiasts. The goal – to complete at least 5 rounds of MacRitchie in no more than 2 hours per round. My first taste of the trail would end miserably due to inadequate footwear and preparation. My feet were shot with blisters because stupid me was running the trail in Nike Frees. I managed 2 rounds, which was all of 21km. I suppose I should be somewhat happy, I did a half marathon on my virgin trail run.

Things stepped up from there, Wilson was getting me more and more into trail running and I loved it. Nothing beats running with nature in the morning to start your day. I was introduced to Jasmine, who was an international ultramarathoner that trained with Wilson. That's when I found out that she was one half of the women's team. The other half, Yihui, would come from the Singapore Women's Everest Team. Yes you read it right. It was one of the girls that have conquered Everest. As you can see, I was in deep shit with zero experience training alongside 3 seasoned athletes. Training was to intensify with Wilson planning a steep mileage programme. It was to start with a 20km Friday night run at 10pm followed by a 30km Saturday morning run at 6am, all aimed to train us to cope with sleep deprivation and night vision. This programme tapered upwards weekly to 40km runs, then 50km runs etc. All this and more as we had stair climbing sessions in the middle of the week! First we conquered Duxton Plains. Yup, all 50 storeys with 5kg full pack, 4 times. Then we managed to sneak into the stairwell of Republic Plaza and did that twice. And then there were gym sessions as well. As you can probably tell, I was burn out most of the time, because while I can take the gym sessions and stairs, the runs always leave me gutted and before you know it, the weekly cycle is complete and we started on the next. My greatest achievement in Singapore was a 7 hour 50km trail run, period. I was doing a marathon every week and I was really burnt out!

It was time to come back to Australia. Moving had to be done as I've got a new place and lots of new stuff needed to be bought. In the 2 weeks upon returning, I have essentially done almost zero training. It wasn't good and I felt the fitness that I had so painstakingly built up over the last months going down the drain. I feebly started 7km runs with pack. For stairs Wilson suggested the 1000 steps of Dandenong. To its credit, it was the most magnificent trail climb I've ever seen. I love the Dandenongs and I've been up the steps a few more times after that and many more to come I'm sure. Exactly one week to race day and we were scrambling because 2 of the original support crew suddenly had to pull out and we had to reorganize fast. Kudos to Brendan Hills for efficiently organising our support! With everything settled all we had left to do was to make it to Bogong Village.

We arrived on the Friday afternoon prior to the 4:30am start on Saturday and I got a first glimpse of the kind of people we were up against. They were all really fit looking Aussies! During the race briefing, Paul Ashton, the race director, acknowledged us as the only internationals for this year's race. Singapore had sent 2 teams and all 4 of us were hoping to do Singapore proud.

Final preparations that night was frantic for the girls, while the guys took it easy and went to sleep at 10pm. We awakened at 3am in time for a hearty breakfast and lots of photos. I had a surprise visit from Ellis, who came up to support me! We were pretty pumped heading down to the start line. This was going to be a good race.

Flag off. TOUGH was going strong hanging with the leader pack. We powered up Spione and were soon up in the high plains. We were on of the first to reach the first checkpoint at Warby Corner, where our support Brendan and Ashley were waiting for us. We pushed on again after a 10 minute break on the Bogong loop. The path up Mt Bogong was long and arduous, but the view at the top more than made up for the climb. It was spectacular. We pushed on and was back at Warby Corner before 5pm. That was a marathon distance loop. We had our delicious cup noodles at Warby and headed towards Langfords Gap where the full crew was waiting. Upon arrival at Langfords I experienced first hand the kind of support crew Wilson was raving about. As we came in, they came out and took our packs off. We were ushered to individual chairs and our shoes removed. Each were given a jacket to keep warm and a bowl of soup and hot chocolate were shoved at us instantaneously. Man, I felt like a king. A hot meal came shortly after as we got some rest before the final push of the day. We left Langfords Gap at 6:45pm and headed toward the iconic Pole 333, afterwhich we continued up to Mt Loch where our crew would be waiting with our dinner and sleeping tents. The climb up Mt Loch was horrible to say the least. I was dead tired and the climb went on forever. The winds on the top of Mt Loch was epic, so strong that it can actually blow you away. We were cold, tired, and miserable. Looking forward to just getting into the tent and getting some shut eye. We found the crew at 12:45am, got into the tents and out of the cold. Dinner was served and we got 3 hours of sleep. Waking up was going to be a bitch.

4:30am Sunday. Brendan woke us up and Yang gave us some breakfast. I took my first out field shit since 2 years ago in the army. But then again taking a dump in 100km/h winds was nothing like the mild nature of Lorong Asrama. We set off a little after 5am towards Harrietville, the only checkpoint that was an actual town. We arrived at 9:45am with me limping slightly, favouring my left knee. We had our 2nd breakfast there before our ascend to Mt Feathertop. As you can see, we were pretty well fed! But then again, we were suffering from runner's brain. To quote Paul Ashton – "runner's brain is no brain at all". Halfway up Feathertop my knee was starting to act up pretty bad. It would hurt when I stop, so I had to keep moving. Unfortunately my fitness level did not allow me to keep moving, so the struggle was there. Getting up Mt Feathertop was an experience on its own! It was really rocky and steep so one misstep would mean certain death. However, like Bogong, the reward came in the form of a stunning view. We were off Feathertop and heading down Diamantina Spur by 2:45pm. That was when the twist of fate occured. My right knee started acting up really bad all of a sudden, leaving me essentially legless. The Diamantina spur was described in the course notes as steep and some bashing required. It wasn't lying. In fact, lots of bashing was required! Imagine my agony going down the spur when I could not place any weight on either knee. A 2 hour descend stretched to 6 hours as I slowly inched my way down. We were literally going at 1.5km/h. Wilson found me 2 tree branches for me to support myself. When we finally hit the bottom it was well dark. We still had a cut-off timing to meet. We had to get to Pole 333 by 12am and it was 8:30pm. We were 4km away from Pole 333 and were racing to meet the cut-off and embark on the final leg to Bogong Village. I was pretty stoked by then, even with 2 bad knees. We proceeded to climb the trail to Weston hut which was a really steep climb. I remember going pretty strong until I decided I needed a break. Within a minute, I was shivering uncontrollably and starting to lose lots of body heat. Wilson pulled me off the trail and started a fire to warm me up. I was nearing Hypothermia and my legs just wouldn't go anymore. After 132km I was just a wreck. Team TOUGH called it quits there and then. It was 9:21pm. We would have made the cut-off. Till today I still feel really sorry not being able to carry on. Wilson was nice enough to stay with me, but I sense deep down inside that he was quite disappointed. I was rescued by the race director at 4am, which made up for half my race fee I reckon.

And so my Bogong experience came to an end. Was I disappointed? Yes. I would very much like to have completed the race, but I am proud of what I have accomplished. 132km for a total noob is no mean feat. I've hung with the best of them, and I've forged friendships that would last a lifetime. The Mind Alpine Challenge ranks top on my list of greatest moments in Australia, for now, and I'm sure many years to come.




... that is till I complete it next year. Hmmm... let the thought simmer Shawn, let it simmer.

Mind Alpine Runners

This is damn amusing how this person described the runners.

Here are the crazy ones;

Solo 100ml/100km
Tamyka Bell
Darrel Robins
Jessica Robson
Andrew Vize
Phil Whitten
Melanie Parker
Andrew Hewatt
Kyvelie Tsolakis
Lisa Lucas
Innes Smith
Joe Murphy
Rick Cross
Stewart Cowey
Cameron Gillies
Phil Murphy
David McKinnon
Dale Adamson
Matt Gerrad
Delyth Lloyd
Brian Jones

Team 10K Specialists
Chris Brown
Andrea Titter
Grant Peden
Simon Wallish

Team Singapore Girls
Jasmine Wong
Yuhui Sim

Team T.O.U.G.H
Wilson Low
Shawn Heng

Team Just Doiters
Nick Likane
Dmitry Likane

Team Endurance
Leigh Murphy
Cass Murphy
Kirsty Packham

Team Olpa Waru
Oliver Keaveney
Russell Jones
Warwick Stain
Paul Doyle

Team TRV
Cathy Philo
Peter Bignell

Team Aida
Warren Nicholls
Carolyn Nicholls
Luke Nicholls
Paul Keegan
Michelle Macaronis
Todd Inglis
Paul Ainsworth
Loula Abadid

Team Mountain Goats
Craig Gallagher
Ben Gallagher
Justin Farrow
Luke Knight
Alex Chong
Matthew Van Bakel
Erica Coaley
Jason Grant
Matthew Raftis
Emily Ferguson
Chris Tew
Jason Grant

Team Mindful Ones
Monique Mennerich
Gerry Naughtin
Anne Agni
Stewart McMullin
Thea Geddes
Rob Priestly
Liz Wilde
Elinor Kamachu

Team Outer Edge
Stuart Gibson
William Morgan
Richard Bowles
Jarad Kholar
Patrick Kinsella

We've got 2 teams from Singapore!!!
Let's do Singapore proud people!

A Thoroughly Inspiring Email

This is the difference between education here and back home. I wish all my lecturers were like this.
We were put into this communication module this year that had little relevance to our course of study and were rallying to get the module originally catered for us back. Here's my lecturer's response.

Hey Second-Years,

First things first: I miss all of you. I don’t expect that many of you would share that sentiment but I want all of you to know that I do miss our classes together. I know that plenty of things have been happening. Making a quick, short list: well, first, you are now in second-year; we’ve all moved to a new building; for some reason we have a lot less computers; you now have to share rooms; and we are in different classes (classes which some of us don’t really know much about nor understand the rationale behind). I know that all of that can be a little too much (or too annoying) to deal with particularly at the start of the year. And it it isn’t nice to start a new year in a negative gear.

With this e-mail I hope to give you all a slight push towards a better direction. I remember in my first year of university I had a lecturer who told me that much of design (it was graphic design back then) is all about “CVS to BVS”. That is, a Current View of the Situation to a Better View of the Situation. I hope that after reading this email we could all have a better view of our current situation.

I know that there have been many concerns about courses/classes (the new ones or the absence of the old ones). I have heard some of these concerns since the end of last year and I know that more have been raised since the start of classes this year. In all honesty I do share some of these concerns.

Now before anything else let us set some records straight:

1. From what I know (and I believe many of us lecturers in communication design share this opinion) the intention of those courses was to have a platform for communication students to work together, to interact and build a healthier understanding of their personal profession and the profession of other students in the broader field of communications.

2. We (us lecturers) agreed and believed that all disciplines (comm. design, PR, advertising, prof. comm. etc) involved in these new courses should be properly and equally represented in content (what is taught), outcome (projects) and pedagogy (how the course is taught).

3. With those intentions in mind, we supported the development of the communication strand courses and we agreed that our students should be a part of it.

4. We (us lecturers) agreed that it was best that our students took the courses at their second year. We hoped that in first year we could give you, our students, a grounding and better understanding of who you are as communication designers and by doing so you could engage with other professions more meaningfully.

5. Whether or not these first 4 points have been met is not the concern of this e-mail (although it is a concern of mine). This email is concerned with improving the situation by reaching and affecting the people who could truly make a difference—you.

I am not writing all this as an easy way of “resting” this issue. In all sincerity I ask you never to put this issue to rest. Perhaps we, your lecturers (the older ones who should know better), are failing you. We may be dropping the ball. If so, let me be first to say, I’m sorry. And allow me to ask you, partly for our benefit, but even more for the benefit of every aspiring creative-mind, show us how to do it better.

I have heard many reports of our profession being misunderstood and in some cases even disparaged and demeaned. Don’t hold that against them. They just don’t know any better. I’m not merely saying turn the other cheek and wait for another swipe. I’m saying go and understand them so that in turn they might understand your profession; that they might see that before highfalutin (pretentious) theory or any pedagogy you need the very human capacity of empathy to be a good communicator. Understand them.

I have heard that many of us do not feel that we are included in discussions or that any of the material suits our needs. I ask you: remove that from your minds. Do not think that any longer. More often than not people use words as perimeter markings. A way of saying: “this is what I know and if you want to enter here you have to climb my wall of words.” Bollocks.

Your job as communication designers is to expedite the transfer of ideas—make communication better. Don’t play that game of building walls of knowledge. Create discussions that are more textured, infinitely varied and vibrantly colourful that they will want to join in your discussions. You are intelligent. Don’t let walking thesauruses tell you otherwise. Engage with the material presented and pick up what you can. If it helps, imagine that you are archaeologists sifting through loose soil for real finds.

I am not asking you to take some moral high-ground and operate as if you are better than us or the rest of the school (although you may well be). All I am asking is that you take your job, that of a communication designer, seriously and go on to carry out your duties. Good communicators are engaged individuals. They know how to listen, to mark patterns and they know how to respond. They add value to situations rather than merely point fingers.

My dear communication designers, what you have in front of you is a communication problem. In fact, I could not have written a better brief. Now go fix it.

If you have read this far, I thank you and I hope you take on this challenge. If you see me in the halls, offer a high-five and perhaps remind me—God knows I need it—remind me that it will all be okay.

Reinar

How could you not feel motivated after reading that?

Mind Alpine Challenge

I've been back down under for about 3 weeks now, apologies for not updating this blog. Just got my internet set up today. I'm excited! Starting a new sem, new challenges. None of which will be as daunting and challenging as the one I will face next weekend.

The Mind Alpine Challenge is a 48 hour, 100mile (160km) race through the trails of the Alpine Ranges of Mt Bogong. The completion rate is only about 40%, and this year, we have 2 teams from Sunny Singapore attempting this challenge.

Team T.O.U.G.H (Team Of Ultra Garang Humans) consists of my team mate Wilson Low, an ex commando officer and veteran at Ironmans and adventure racing, and me – a veteran of... well... 3 marathons? As you can see, there is a gulf of difference between us, and I want to try my hardest not to let my team mate down. We could very well be the first Singaporeans to complete this race, unless of course, the other team prevails.

Team Into The Wild – Jasmine Wong and Sim Yihui. One an experienced international adventure racer who completed a 260km desert run on her first ultra marathon, the other part of Singapore's first ever Womens' Everest Team. As you can see, they are very accomplished and are seeded to complete the race.

We've been training together back in Singapore, and to be honest, I'm often the one lagging behind in terms of physical and mental conditioning. They know what they are getting into, I don't. I've had a lot of people telling me 100 miles is a crazy distance for a first ultra, what more cross terrain. Well, I will find out for myself won't I? We are however, really motivated to do this not only as a challenge to ourselves, but also for a good cause. Not only are we racing, we are also helping to raise funds for Mind. (Will provide a link soon) We hope to bring glory to the tiny island of Singapore, and we certainly hope we can get as much support as possible.

Pain is temporary, pride is forever.

I wonder...

Are my contributions really that small that it is so easily overlooked by people?
Am I too benign, too obscure, too subtle.
Must I shout?
And then I wonder if I would be remembered
When I'm gone
Will I barely leave a void?
Sometimes
I wonder...

Clarification!

Am I the only one that finds the "hit" song "Nobody" by the Wonder Girls (how they ever came up with that name is beyond me, probably wondering why they suck so bad at singing and enunciation.) Seriously, that MV is just another excuse for horny men (and women, you never know) to ogle at plastic ladies who barely know how to dance too.

SO. You have heard the song, but have you truly understood it? They are music artistes afterall and their lyrics have GOT to mean something.

Well, contrary to popular belief, what you hear is not exactly what was meant. I mean, they have problems pronouncing proper words for Christs' sake! Let me give you a short summary into their song which as you would see, isn't about love, but animals!

WRONG
Nobody nobody but chu (you, for some reason)
Nobody nobody but chu
Nobody nobody but chu
Nobody nobody nobody nobody

ACTUAL LYRICS
No birdie no birdie but 猪 (see, hey can actually enunciate!)
No birdie no birdie but 猪
No birdie no birdie but 猪
No birdie no birdie no birdie no birdie

And the song goes on about this bird who was replaced by a pig.

Mutual

Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
If you're human, I'm human too.
Feelings are mutual, and deserve respect.
But how can I give when I don't get some back?

MR25 Ultra Marathon

Took part in the MR25 Ultra Marathon over the weekend. It was when I was introduced to the multitude of garang human beings I've always knew existed in Singapore but never seen. And honestly, to see is to believe. They are people at the very peak of physical condition. No Standard Chartered Marathon posers here. Make no mistake, these people are the real deal and can put almost all 50,000 Standard Chartered Marathon runners to shame.

Being around them is a surreal experience in itself. When you are surrounded by greatness, you are forced to match them at their level. Unfortunately, I bombed, and I bombed hard. These people are what they are through much sacrifice and training. There is no way you can come amongst them without training and expect to hang. Alas, my first foray into trail running/ultra marathon wasn't as rosy as I had hope, but the experience was bountiful, and the lessons learnt, immense.

I barely made the half marathon, completing it in 2hrs 30mins. However, I have learnt that running on flat ground is childs' play compared to running in the wilderness. A lot more awareness is needed, and a lot more stamina too. Despite the failure I have realised that – this is something that I want to conquer. I know I can do it with adequate training. The Standard Chartered marathon has been milked pass its worth. It has become (for lack of a better description) a national past time. This is a real challenge, and I'm coming back for it next year.

Screw SCSM, this is much more worthwhile.

Shades That Impairs and Trucker Caps with Double Volume Height

I'm just getting this out of my system because of the ridiculous occurrences that I have had the misfortune of witnessing.

Firstly, people who wear sunglasses. Do you really need to wear them inside a building? For what? Scared the lights too bright blind you is it? Make you look like COCK understand.

Pardon my deviation to Singlish, there really isn't any other way to put that message across.

Secondly, double volume trucker caps. What's up with that? Caps are meant to sit snugly on the top of your head. What, your hair needs breathing space as well? Why bother wearing a cap then? Brain need air ah? Your brain got big enough not? Make you look like ANOTHER COCK!

Offline

Shawn Down Under is going offline for the next 7 days.
This reject will update again when he returns with lots of photos.

Official Semester 2 Results

Woke up specially at 6am (9am Melbourne time) to check on my results, and I've got to say, a slight bit disappointing.

Design Theory B – PA (52)
Studio D – DI (72)
Studio E – DI (77)
Studio F – DI (78)

How did the pass happen? Damn... what a damper.

Reaping the Rewards

A brand new DSLR – a Nikon D90 now belongs to me. Yes, it was quite a pinch in the pocket. But, a pinch well spent I reckon.

Another piece of good news. My folio results are in!
Big thanks to Adam for collecting my folios for me.

Studio D: DI
Studio D R&A Journal: DI
Studio D Folio: DI
Studio E: HD
Studio E Folio: HD
Studio F: HD

Can confidently apply for a job now. =)
Anxiously awaiting the final results on Nov 30th.

Living it up in Singapore. Can't wait to meet Ellis again!

It's Good To Be Back!

The familiar surroundings, the humidity, my own bed, TV, refrigerator, kitchen etc. The feeling's just awesome. To walk through the gates and see you family and friends waiting upon your arrival. Thanks to Kevin and Minw for making the time and coming to the airport. Sincere apologies for Qantas' delay. Wait... why am I apologizing for that lousy carrier? Ok truth be told, Qantas isn't that bad, only Singapore Airlines is better! Lol!

Yet to taste any local food, but got the opportunity this morning so I'm not going to waste it!

By the way, blogged this post on high speed unlimited broadband! The speed and ease is so invigorating!

Gratituity?

Got this article from Yahoo! news this morning.

Pope and John Wagner were hauled away by police and charged with theft for not paying the mandatory 18 percent gratuity totaling $16 after eating at the Lehigh Pub in Bethlehem, Pa. with six friends.

Pope claimed that they had to wait nearly an hour for their order and that she had to get napkins and silverware for the table herself.

“At this point I became very annoyed because I had already gone up to the bar myself to have my soda refilled because the waitress never came back,” Pope said.

After the $73 bill came, the group paid for food, drinks, and tax but refused to pay the tip. After explaining the bad service to the bartender in charge, Pope claimed he took their money and called police. The couple was handcuffed and placed in the back of a police car.

“I understand that, you know, we didn’t pay the gratuity, but it was a gratuity, it wasn’t something that was required,” said Wagner.

Police charged them with theft since the gratuity was part of the actual bill. However, it is doubtful that the charges will hold up in front of a judge. The couple is scheduled to appear in court next month.

Firstly, how did gratituity become part of the actual bill? Isn't it something you give out of gratitute? The word alone implies that it is not mandatory.

Gratitude – the quality of being thankful

Isn't it just ridiculous to impose gratitude? You must be grateful that I have served you, because without me the food would never have gotten to you. Hello? Isn't that part of your job description in the first place? Furthermore, by imposing gratituity charges as part of the bill, wouldn't it dampen the quality of service? It gives the staff assurance that the tip is "in the bag", why bother then? I'm going to get an 18% tip regardless so lets have some fun now shall we?

Good luck bringing the case to court I say. As for the bartender who called the cops on the couple, grow some brains.

Couple Busted for Refusing to Pay Tip

Singapore in 24 Hours

The time has finally come to leave Melbourne and go back to Singapore. In 24 hours, I'd be eating chicken rice and sipping teh tarik in some obscure coffeeshop on the fringes of local suburbia.

Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon – 06 Dec 09
MacRitchie Runners 25 Ultra Marathon – 27 Dec 09
Run For the Kids – 14 Mar 10
Mind Alpine Challenge – 22 Mar 09

Packed garang schedule ahead. Life's good.

The End Is Near

It is officially 2 days left on the countdown to Singapore. Lots have been going on this past week, Ellis is back in Singapore and I'm still here. With just a couple of days left, God has gone and played a cruel prank on me, slowing time down to a crawl. I'm forced to occupy myself in a manner so exhaustive it is hardly comprehensible. Waking up to a morning run is a good start. The day passes ever so slowly, and it certainly doesn't help that the Sun rises at 5am and sets at 8pm.

Oh well. It's Wednesday. That's 48 hours. I'm going home! God's been good to me this year, as did everyone I've encountered during my stay in Melbourne. And now, it's time to go back home. My home. Remembered the pledge we recited on my commissioning parade – "I dedicate my life to Singapore". Sure, we laughed at it then. Little did we know how much that small island meant to us when it's taken away. I've made new friends and acquaintances over the past 8 months, but Singapore is definitely where I want to be.

Home. Family. Friends. Heart.