Tuesday, May 24, 2011
Leave, Leave, I wanna go on Leave.
Even my mum has gotten to the stage where she asks "Why are you always having problems with your leave?"
Actually to be fair, I think I actually have it pretty good as it is. I can almost freely determine when I want to take leave, but subject to modifications and approval of course. Just that quite a few times, I've had to adjust my leave for some work or another but I'm sure everyone out there has met such stuff before.
Anyway I had so looked forward to taking some leave at the end of my Advanced Diploma course to 'reward' myself. Slack around etc. Original plan was to go to Beijing with my friend but then my friend cannot take leave because it is the June holidays after all and parents with children would like to take leave to bring their children overseas and we surely cannot block them since we are single and can go any time of the year.
Anyways I've had a bit of an issue with my workplace ion the issue of leave. I asked if I could take leave for 2 to 3 weeks after 10th of June and I was told to deconflict with Colleague A. I asked why I needed to deconflict with him, and that was when I was told I was taking over him. Aww... how sweet to inform me of this at the juncture when I want to take leave.
So I checked with A and ... A has already booked his leave for late June. That means I can only go on two weeks of leave. Wow. Very efficient deconflicting here. Not much choices anyway. That's fine though, but then I was also expected to go back to work to take over A's branch in the two weeks of leave that I was gonna take. I'm so appreciative of the fact that they felt that I might be too bored during my leave and thus need some other activities planned for me. You know, because I so wasn't planning to go overseas.
Subsequently, I made a bit of noise, yadda yadda and got told that yes I can go for my three weeks leave. I then happily sussed out some trips and was planning to go on a trip with my parents... but I didn't want to book anything till my leave application was confirmed as approved. I didn't want to be the type who say "but I booked already".
And so, goondu me waited to confirm and now the latest is that I am allowed to go on the leave IF I attend a briefing before I go on leave. One of my colleagues has also super efficiently scheduled a briefing for this Thursday. Unfortunately, I am still on attachment for my Advanced diploma but it seems that no one quite noticed that. I guess they think that I can just waltz out of the attachment, and go wherever.
I think I should just forget about the leave and instead, go back to piss some people off.
0 Adorations
Even my mum has gotten to the stage where she asks "Why are you always having problems with your leave?"
Actually to be fair, I think I actually have it pretty good as it is. I can almost freely determine when I want to take leave, but subject to modifications and approval of course. Just that quite a few times, I've had to adjust my leave for some work or another but I'm sure everyone out there has met such stuff before.
Anyway I had so looked forward to taking some leave at the end of my Advanced Diploma course to 'reward' myself. Slack around etc. Original plan was to go to Beijing with my friend but then my friend cannot take leave because it is the June holidays after all and parents with children would like to take leave to bring their children overseas and we surely cannot block them since we are single and can go any time of the year.
Anyways I've had a bit of an issue with my workplace ion the issue of leave. I asked if I could take leave for 2 to 3 weeks after 10th of June and I was told to deconflict with Colleague A. I asked why I needed to deconflict with him, and that was when I was told I was taking over him. Aww... how sweet to inform me of this at the juncture when I want to take leave.
So I checked with A and ... A has already booked his leave for late June. That means I can only go on two weeks of leave. Wow. Very efficient deconflicting here. Not much choices anyway. That's fine though, but then I was also expected to go back to work to take over A's branch in the two weeks of leave that I was gonna take. I'm so appreciative of the fact that they felt that I might be too bored during my leave and thus need some other activities planned for me. You know, because I so wasn't planning to go overseas.
Subsequently, I made a bit of noise, yadda yadda and got told that yes I can go for my three weeks leave. I then happily sussed out some trips and was planning to go on a trip with my parents... but I didn't want to book anything till my leave application was confirmed as approved. I didn't want to be the type who say "but I booked already".
And so, goondu me waited to confirm and now the latest is that I am allowed to go on the leave IF I attend a briefing before I go on leave. One of my colleagues has also super efficiently scheduled a briefing for this Thursday. Unfortunately, I am still on attachment for my Advanced diploma but it seems that no one quite noticed that. I guess they think that I can just waltz out of the attachment, and go wherever.
I think I should just forget about the leave and instead, go back to piss some people off.
Monday, May 23, 2011
A1 Crispy Puffs
I usually only eat curry puffs from one place only, and it ain't OCK. I don't think OCK is even worth the $1.30 (or is it $1.20?) compared to the curry puff I favour. I like curry puffs from Tip Top Curry Puff. Although it has gotten less tasty in recent years (not to mention more expensive), it still remains the best curry puff I've ever eaten. I have to say that I have not gone around Singapore tasting every single puff lah, so I am definitely no puff authority.
Anyways, today I decided to buy an A1 puff. I had decided to go against my usual practice and buy a non tip top puff. After all, you never know what you are missing right?
So here, is my personal opinion on the A1 crispy puff. Benchmark puff is, naturally, Tip Top Curry Puff. I will comment on the following areas: crust, meat, flavour.
Crust
Bland. That's all I can say. I love Tip Top curry puff's crust because it has a buttery flavour to it, although nowadays, even their crust has fallen in standards. Still A1's crust has nothing on Tip Top's. Not by a long shot by ICBM.
Meat
In English, the name of the puff is Crispy Curry Puff (w/egg) so I guess it is acceptable that you can hardly find any chicken meat in it. Yet in Chinese characters there is the word for chicken. Anyways, I personally prefer a puff in which I can bite into chicken meat chunks. CHUNKS, not mush. Could only find one small piece, I think.
Flavour
Very mushy. Some people love it, I don't. As previously mentioned, I prefer to be able to bite into the meat chunks. If there wasn't a paper bag to contain the puff, my puff would have fallen all over my clothes and the floor. And egg. The egg was kinda lost in there.... The puff was more spicy than flavoured with curry. Yes, I believe that curry does not have to be overly spicy. Curry and Chilli are not siamese twins.
Granted that these days, even Tip Top's puff has lost it's standard in flavour (I believe that is due to a change in the recipe in order to gain the Halal certificate, what a shame) but Tip Top's puffs flavour still beats A1's hands, feet, nose, hair, teeth and whatever else down.
And A1's puff cost $1.50 to Tip Top's $1.30, although A1's puff is larger. Though I still think Tip Top's is more worth it cos it has more meat.
0 Adorations
I usually only eat curry puffs from one place only, and it ain't OCK. I don't think OCK is even worth the $1.30 (or is it $1.20?) compared to the curry puff I favour. I like curry puffs from Tip Top Curry Puff. Although it has gotten less tasty in recent years (not to mention more expensive), it still remains the best curry puff I've ever eaten. I have to say that I have not gone around Singapore tasting every single puff lah, so I am definitely no puff authority.
Anyways, today I decided to buy an A1 puff. I had decided to go against my usual practice and buy a non tip top puff. After all, you never know what you are missing right?
So here, is my personal opinion on the A1 crispy puff. Benchmark puff is, naturally, Tip Top Curry Puff. I will comment on the following areas: crust, meat, flavour.
Crust
Bland. That's all I can say. I love Tip Top curry puff's crust because it has a buttery flavour to it, although nowadays, even their crust has fallen in standards. Still A1's crust has nothing on Tip Top's. Not by a long shot by ICBM.
Meat
In English, the name of the puff is Crispy Curry Puff (w/egg) so I guess it is acceptable that you can hardly find any chicken meat in it. Yet in Chinese characters there is the word for chicken. Anyways, I personally prefer a puff in which I can bite into chicken meat chunks. CHUNKS, not mush. Could only find one small piece, I think.
Flavour
Very mushy. Some people love it, I don't. As previously mentioned, I prefer to be able to bite into the meat chunks. If there wasn't a paper bag to contain the puff, my puff would have fallen all over my clothes and the floor. And egg. The egg was kinda lost in there.... The puff was more spicy than flavoured with curry. Yes, I believe that curry does not have to be overly spicy. Curry and Chilli are not siamese twins.
Granted that these days, even Tip Top's puff has lost it's standard in flavour (I believe that is due to a change in the recipe in order to gain the Halal certificate, what a shame) but Tip Top's puffs flavour still beats A1's hands, feet, nose, hair, teeth and whatever else down.
And A1's puff cost $1.50 to Tip Top's $1.30, although A1's puff is larger. Though I still think Tip Top's is more worth it cos it has more meat.
Sunday, May 15, 2011
Last Month of Advanced Diploma Course!!
And it has finally arrived!! By sheer blundering and what not (not to mention the great help I received from my classmates) I have finally arrived at the last month of this course. This course has given me great grief and anguish but it also let me meet some of the best people I've known.
I just hope that I pass all my papers (still waiting on the results of two papers).
I probably won't be able to attend my examinations at UniSim AGAIN. This is getting so irritating. My lecturer asked me how much this all cost so I told her about 1 to 2 k each module, with 4 modules being about $6 to 8k. I wish I could keep that money in my pocket. I could go travel to so many places.
After this course, I plan to take a vacation. For now the plan is Beijing. Had some hiccups with my leave (was expected to take only two weeks cos it clashed with someone else's leave and also within that two weeks I was further expected to go back to take over a department. Lame.) but that seems to have been resolved now, so I can happily plan my vacation! As much as people think that going on studies is a break from work, it's not exactly a holiday. It's been some time since I last had tonnes of deadlines bearing down on me.
I would actually have preferred to defer my vacation until I completed my isotretinoin course, but as it is, it is safer to take the vacation now as one never knows when one can next take a break. If I have to take the same modules for a third semester, I think I might apply to defer my UniSim studies for one semester. Just getting a bit sick of the same old thing.
Ah, I should just go to bed now cos I'm starting to feel hungry and that's not good.
0 Adorations
And it has finally arrived!! By sheer blundering and what not (not to mention the great help I received from my classmates) I have finally arrived at the last month of this course. This course has given me great grief and anguish but it also let me meet some of the best people I've known.
I just hope that I pass all my papers (still waiting on the results of two papers).
I probably won't be able to attend my examinations at UniSim AGAIN. This is getting so irritating. My lecturer asked me how much this all cost so I told her about 1 to 2 k each module, with 4 modules being about $6 to 8k. I wish I could keep that money in my pocket. I could go travel to so many places.
After this course, I plan to take a vacation. For now the plan is Beijing. Had some hiccups with my leave (was expected to take only two weeks cos it clashed with someone else's leave and also within that two weeks I was further expected to go back to take over a department. Lame.) but that seems to have been resolved now, so I can happily plan my vacation! As much as people think that going on studies is a break from work, it's not exactly a holiday. It's been some time since I last had tonnes of deadlines bearing down on me.
I would actually have preferred to defer my vacation until I completed my isotretinoin course, but as it is, it is safer to take the vacation now as one never knows when one can next take a break. If I have to take the same modules for a third semester, I think I might apply to defer my UniSim studies for one semester. Just getting a bit sick of the same old thing.
Ah, I should just go to bed now cos I'm starting to feel hungry and that's not good.
Tuesday, May 03, 2011
Hustings!!
And so the much anticipated General Election 2011 has finally arrived. It seems as if everyone has been waiting for this since last year. I have been waiting for this day too!
I can't say that I dislike my MP, but sometimes, I wonder why is it that I could settle something with two phonecalls when two of his letters to NEA and Town Council didn't work? Otherwise he's not too bad.
Almost everyone has a choice this time round. All I hope is that everyone makes a choice because he / she wants to vote for that party and not because they don't like the other guy. Yet, that may be exactly what I am doing. I may not be voting because I want to vote for that party. It is likely to be because I prefer not to vote for the other guy. We'll see when the time comes.
Until 6th May, we're all gonna have a field day with the hustings. I'm still disappointed that I haven't caught a full Teochew speech this time round but I guess we all need to grow out of that!! If this goes one, Teochew is gonna be the 'opposition language' or something!
At least this is something to get me through another week of boring attachment. I also have 2 assignments to complete and 4 exams coming up soon.
/cry
0 Adorations
And so the much anticipated General Election 2011 has finally arrived. It seems as if everyone has been waiting for this since last year. I have been waiting for this day too!
I can't say that I dislike my MP, but sometimes, I wonder why is it that I could settle something with two phonecalls when two of his letters to NEA and Town Council didn't work? Otherwise he's not too bad.
Almost everyone has a choice this time round. All I hope is that everyone makes a choice because he / she wants to vote for that party and not because they don't like the other guy. Yet, that may be exactly what I am doing. I may not be voting because I want to vote for that party. It is likely to be because I prefer not to vote for the other guy. We'll see when the time comes.
Until 6th May, we're all gonna have a field day with the hustings. I'm still disappointed that I haven't caught a full Teochew speech this time round but I guess we all need to grow out of that!! If this goes one, Teochew is gonna be the 'opposition language' or something!
At least this is something to get me through another week of boring attachment. I also have 2 assignments to complete and 4 exams coming up soon.
/cry
