Yeap. I have been having this craving for too long... and I can't afford it. So I decided to split it into 2..... iPhone= iPod + Phone.... That's when I started researching on iPod Touch... and it seems that iPod Touch + some ciplak phone is cheaper.
So yesterday night after work, I took a bus to the nearest Apple reseller and bought it. Just a swipe of the card... 10 seconds after and the transaction was completed. Didn't hurt my wallet at all... but wait till the bill comes in the following month... wait a minute... today is June...... crap... I'll have to look at the bill earlier than I thought... haih...
Anyway, I spent the whole night configuring everything..... and I only realized Singapore has this technology called Wireless@SG. Free sign up and then can surf the internet everywhere (except for residential areas and some really hulu places like NTU ... =.=""" ...of course the speed is limited to 512kbps... that's what you get when it is free I guess... anyway, I am very happy with all its functions so far... now trying to get more applications from iTunes...
Yes. The price. I guess it is pretty standard. SGD 327.90 = iPod Touch, silicone casing, small speaker, portabe USB charger, screen protector and one really weird device which I am still trying to figure out...
Monday, May 31, 2010
Sunday, May 30, 2010
没有妳的日子真难过
As much as I hate to admit it, but I am really missing you already.
I never knew how much you meant to me until you are away.
For I have taken you for granted all these years.
Now I could spend hours with you without the slightest sense of boredom.
Your voice soothes me when no one else could.
You keep me sane in this geniuses-filled place called NTU.
G** I wished you were here in my room right now.
But that is against the rules of course... (It never hurts to imagine...)
While I tried to get by my days with another substitute,
It is not the same, it will never be the same.
I can't wait till July when I go back to my home.
And just spend my one-month break with you.
Lol... Since when have I been so sentimental? As a matter of fact, most of what I said is true. I have gone on without my piano (when I say piano, I mean a proper one, not keyboards) for about a month already. I tried playing the keyboard in my hall's music room, but tak syok langsung.... touching langsung tak ada... haih.... this happens because my Summer Research working hours clash with Music Room's operating hours. I just wished I could take a day off and spend some quality time with my beloved grand piano but with all this work piling up, I don't think it is even possible.
For what it is worth, I will be back in Malaysia for the whole July. My mentor is going back to France for her daughter's wedding.... she is marrying a Malaysian in France... how ironic and this also shows how kepo I am... go and 'bat' my mentor's family history...lol
Countdown towards seeing you: ONE MONTH.... =(
I never knew how much you meant to me until you are away.
For I have taken you for granted all these years.
My demanding working hours are keeping me away from you.
It has been a month since I last touched you.
It started with a slight interest, and now I find myself inseparable from you.Now I could spend hours with you without the slightest sense of boredom.
Your voice soothes me when no one else could.
You keep me sane in this geniuses-filled place called NTU.
G** I wished you were here in my room right now.
But that is against the rules of course... (It never hurts to imagine...)
While I tried to get by my days with another substitute,
It is not the same, it will never be the same.
I can't wait till July when I go back to my home.
And just spend my one-month break with you.
Lol... Since when have I been so sentimental? As a matter of fact, most of what I said is true. I have gone on without my piano (when I say piano, I mean a proper one, not keyboards) for about a month already. I tried playing the keyboard in my hall's music room, but tak syok langsung.... touching langsung tak ada... haih.... this happens because my Summer Research working hours clash with Music Room's operating hours. I just wished I could take a day off and spend some quality time with my beloved grand piano but with all this work piling up, I don't think it is even possible.
For what it is worth, I will be back in Malaysia for the whole July. My mentor is going back to France for her daughter's wedding.... she is marrying a Malaysian in France... how ironic and this also shows how kepo I am... go and 'bat' my mentor's family history...lol
Countdown towards seeing you: ONE MONTH.... =(
Friday, May 28, 2010
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Resultados
Thanks to W** H**. My original horror movie night was interupted. Lol... anyway, congrats to him first.... Well, so this is how I did:
Inorganic Chemistry II - A+
Biochemistry II - A+
Calculus II - A
Spanish Level 1 - A
Communication Studies - Pass (Not graded)
cGPA to date : 4.80
I am pleasently surprised by Espanol.... well, I think I got to start thinking the possibility of taking Spanish Level 2 next semester .... anyway, I am very glad with the results this time... =)
Inorganic Chemistry II - A+
Biochemistry II - A+
Calculus II - A
Spanish Level 1 - A
Communication Studies - Pass (Not graded)
cGPA to date : 4.80
I am pleasently surprised by Espanol.... well, I think I got to start thinking the possibility of taking Spanish Level 2 next semester .... anyway, I am very glad with the results this time... =)
Saturday, May 22, 2010
My first Mohawk
This is the second time I visited this hairstylist that my friend introduced me to. The first time he convinced me to start styling my hair using wax. Please note that I HATE hair products... somehow my hair will become really dry and clump together but you should have seen how furious he got when he realised I never styled my hair before.... so since then I started on and off... mostly failures... still working on that...
After 2 months, I went to visit him again. I told him the last haircut was too difficult for me. I asked him to change some other hairstyle.... he replied 'okay' and we started our session. He didn't even tell me what he was going to do. What happened next was still quite overwhelming to me. Within 5 minutes, his scissors and hair clippers flew all around my head... at the end of it, he told me 'o ya, this is a mohawk-inspired hairstyle' .......... WT*.... I have seen mohawk and honestly I am not even close to having the courage to carry that style.... then he started styling... the amount of aerosol he used could have made a football-field-sized hole in the ozone... I was literally choking, grasping for air as he went on....
To be fair, this is not a real mohawk... but it is as far as I will go....
So, there you have it. My first "mohawk"...
Front view 
Side view
Back view
For what it is worth, he charges SGD 10 including hairwash, haircut and hairstyling... I think it is quite fair....
After 2 months, I went to visit him again. I told him the last haircut was too difficult for me. I asked him to change some other hairstyle.... he replied 'okay' and we started our session. He didn't even tell me what he was going to do. What happened next was still quite overwhelming to me. Within 5 minutes, his scissors and hair clippers flew all around my head... at the end of it, he told me 'o ya, this is a mohawk-inspired hairstyle' .......... WT*.... I have seen mohawk and honestly I am not even close to having the courage to carry that style.... then he started styling... the amount of aerosol he used could have made a football-field-sized hole in the ozone... I was literally choking, grasping for air as he went on....
To be fair, this is not a real mohawk... but it is as far as I will go....
So, there you have it. My first "mohawk"...
Front viewSide view
Back viewFor what it is worth, he charges SGD 10 including hairwash, haircut and hairstyling... I think it is quite fair....
In 2 months time I shall visit him again. Probably come back as a platinum blonde.... =(
Friday, May 21, 2010
Passed !
Yeap. I passed my NMR (Nuclear Magnetic Resonance) test! To be fair, the passing rate is 100%. As long as you do the training and register for the test, you'll sure pass.... but I am still very glad. This is the first thing I have got out of Summer Research....
PS: Have a safe trip. Remember the table trick. It can save your life ... =)
Results day countdown: 6 days .... =) (smiley face was forced by C****** Y** H** Y**)...
PS: Have a safe trip. Remember the table trick. It can save your life ... =)
Results day countdown: 6 days .... =) (smiley face was forced by C****** Y** H** Y**)...
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Terkena Liquid Nitrogen ... =(
Every morning, one of my duties is to change the liquid nitrogen (we use it to condense evaporated solvent). Since my mentor is away for meeting for the morning, the lab was all to myself ... Muahahaha .... lol .... so I did the usual stuff and when I got to liquid nitrogen part... as I tried to rapidcool the condenser, I was careless enough to let it go in too fast... needless to say, liquid nitorgen spilled out and landed on my hand....
Despite the protection form the gloves, actually I don't think the gloves offerred much insulation, I immediately sufferred a frost bite. There was no one in the lab to help me out. So I had to do according to the safety procedure... I removed my gloves and disposed them quickly, soaked my hands in running water... gosh, at this point the frost bite was overcome by a burning sensation (literally I felt my hands were being burnt)... unfortunately the running water didn't help. My skin that was in contact with that potent liquid began to turn purple... even in the oven (for drying apparatus), the pain didn't stop ....
You know what. I can go on and on about this.... The fact is liquid nitrogen did hit me, but I just shook my hands a few times and it evaporated... as for the cold... it was more like ice water on your hands .... The whole story just now is just to illustrate how dangerous liquid nitrogen is (from what I heard) and how CRAPPY it is... living proof here...lol... in small amount like a spill it is no big deal. Of course don't go and immerse your hands in it!!!!
Moral of the story: Don't believe everything people say about the danger of liquid nitrogen.... and I am really bored (my mentor is still in the meeting), just trying to do something stupid ... =)
Despite the protection form the gloves, actually I don't think the gloves offerred much insulation, I immediately sufferred a frost bite. There was no one in the lab to help me out. So I had to do according to the safety procedure... I removed my gloves and disposed them quickly, soaked my hands in running water... gosh, at this point the frost bite was overcome by a burning sensation (literally I felt my hands were being burnt)... unfortunately the running water didn't help. My skin that was in contact with that potent liquid began to turn purple... even in the oven (for drying apparatus), the pain didn't stop ....
You know what. I can go on and on about this.... The fact is liquid nitrogen did hit me, but I just shook my hands a few times and it evaporated... as for the cold... it was more like ice water on your hands .... The whole story just now is just to illustrate how dangerous liquid nitrogen is (from what I heard) and how CRAPPY it is... living proof here...lol... in small amount like a spill it is no big deal. Of course don't go and immerse your hands in it!!!!
Moral of the story: Don't believe everything people say about the danger of liquid nitrogen.... and I am really bored (my mentor is still in the meeting), just trying to do something stupid ... =)
Friday, May 14, 2010
40 Hours of lab within 5 days
40 hours in 5 days.
Well... this was the schedule for all Summer Research students. Some even do more than this because their professors are too hardworking. Thankful enough, mine is not. In fact, everyday I go to the lab at about 10am and leave normally at 530pm .... apart from the daily report and assisting my mentor I don't really do anything. It is not like I could contribute any ideas to their projects .... just that what they are doing are really really hardcore chemistry stuff .... with my knowledge .... I don't think I could even whimper in their discussion ...
So, what I learned most over this week is the lab skills. Mostly WASHING ... yes, true enough, in our usual teaching lab (the ones we have for our lesson), we have people to clean things up for us if we didn't do a good job .... In contrast, in research lab, you will get back what you washed. Here comes the problem: I am not a very thorough person. Every time I wash something, I am sure to leave out a spot or two...... My mentor wasn't impressed at all .... She kept bragging about 'You know, in France, our first lesson is always to teach us how to WASH ... bla bla bla ...' ..So, I spent my whole week learning how to wash ... And it came with a price ...
You see, when we wash something, there is this little routine that we have to follow.
1. Identify the type of waste in the apparatus (organic or inorganic or precipitate ...etc)
2. Hence choose a suitable solvent. Methanol for inorganic, soap for organic, brush for precipitate .... bla bla bla ...
3. If still there is stain .... we usually throw it. But when it comes to expensive stuff like NMR tubes, we have to put them in special chemical to immerse them for a few hours ...
4. Drying ....Since the research team I joined works fundamentally on Phosphorus aka organic... it is REALLY IMPORTANT, Yo repito: es muy importante, to ensure the apparatus are absolutely 100% dry. So we have to rinse it with acetone (propanone) first because it vapourises very fast. And since vapourisation is endothermic, it gives you frost bite if it touches your skin (trust me, gloves are useless aginst cold) ... Sorry for the chemistry blabbing ... need some outlet here por favor ... Lastly we dry them in an oven overnight...
5. Inspection. Every morning as I take them out from the oven, my mentor will check and start rejecting half of them .... as mean as it seems, I am aware that even a small mistake like a dirty apparatus could change everything ....
Between getting all the frost bites (including while handling liquid nitrogen) and smelling the most disgusting chemicals, you name it you got it .... I end up losing my appetite every lunch ... maybe I don't cut it as a lab person after all ... we'll see ...
Despite all these, I am still looking forward to next Monday. I think this more or less has to do with my mentor ... Don't get me wrong. She is over 50 and married with kids .... not my type exactly ... I mean she slowly allows me to handle more things as it goes by. She even allowed me to do some small reactions by myself by the end of the week .... =).... sounds like kindergarten kids .... haih ...
1 week down. 9 more to go!!
Well... this was the schedule for all Summer Research students. Some even do more than this because their professors are too hardworking. Thankful enough, mine is not. In fact, everyday I go to the lab at about 10am and leave normally at 530pm .... apart from the daily report and assisting my mentor I don't really do anything. It is not like I could contribute any ideas to their projects .... just that what they are doing are really really hardcore chemistry stuff .... with my knowledge .... I don't think I could even whimper in their discussion ...
So, what I learned most over this week is the lab skills. Mostly WASHING ... yes, true enough, in our usual teaching lab (the ones we have for our lesson), we have people to clean things up for us if we didn't do a good job .... In contrast, in research lab, you will get back what you washed. Here comes the problem: I am not a very thorough person. Every time I wash something, I am sure to leave out a spot or two...... My mentor wasn't impressed at all .... She kept bragging about 'You know, in France, our first lesson is always to teach us how to WASH ... bla bla bla ...' ..So, I spent my whole week learning how to wash ... And it came with a price ...
You see, when we wash something, there is this little routine that we have to follow.
1. Identify the type of waste in the apparatus (organic or inorganic or precipitate ...etc)
2. Hence choose a suitable solvent. Methanol for inorganic, soap for organic, brush for precipitate .... bla bla bla ...
3. If still there is stain .... we usually throw it. But when it comes to expensive stuff like NMR tubes, we have to put them in special chemical to immerse them for a few hours ...
4. Drying ....Since the research team I joined works fundamentally on Phosphorus aka organic... it is REALLY IMPORTANT, Yo repito: es muy importante, to ensure the apparatus are absolutely 100% dry. So we have to rinse it with acetone (propanone) first because it vapourises very fast. And since vapourisation is endothermic, it gives you frost bite if it touches your skin (trust me, gloves are useless aginst cold) ... Sorry for the chemistry blabbing ... need some outlet here por favor ... Lastly we dry them in an oven overnight...
5. Inspection. Every morning as I take them out from the oven, my mentor will check and start rejecting half of them .... as mean as it seems, I am aware that even a small mistake like a dirty apparatus could change everything ....
Between getting all the frost bites (including while handling liquid nitrogen) and smelling the most disgusting chemicals, you name it you got it .... I end up losing my appetite every lunch ... maybe I don't cut it as a lab person after all ... we'll see ...
Despite all these, I am still looking forward to next Monday. I think this more or less has to do with my mentor ... Don't get me wrong. She is over 50 and married with kids .... not my type exactly ... I mean she slowly allows me to handle more things as it goes by. She even allowed me to do some small reactions by myself by the end of the week .... =).... sounds like kindergarten kids .... haih ...
1 week down. 9 more to go!!
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Long Gone ...
It has been quite a while since my last entry ... blame the holidays.
Basically, after my final exam (unfortunately it also marked the end of my freshman year .. so fast time flied ... =( ) ... I spent a week or so in Malaysia .... couple of days with my family and the others with friends ... gained back a few pounds .... =) ..
Anyway, everything came to an end last Friday when I returned to Singapore. That night itself we had a long, dreadful 3.5hours meeting for MSA Senior Camp in preparation for the upcoming Freshman Orientation Camp. Needless to say, MSA people in NTU are very semangat and extremely dedicated. Sleep deprivation was part of the routine .... I even put on makeup to act as a ghost to scare people in one of our programmes ...Well, I am not much like them. I took half a day off on Sunday because I was simply too tired ... I just didn't bother anymore and switched off my handphone and SLEPT !!!!!!!!! .... but I am sure it went on well ...
Monday was the start of my Summer Research. It is a Special Semester course that I signed up to gain some experience in the research field and of course to clear some credits along the way ....The Professot I worked with, thank goodness, is a French Professor ... Europeans tend to have a more relaxed schedule and working environment ... I am attached to his research fellow (a French woman) ....
What I do is really simple - help her (my mentor) out with her research. FULL STOP. Fortunately and unfortunately, so happened the stage they are in now is the experiment stage. Meaning that they have done all the background checks and theories, ready to put their ideas to the test. So, the moment I stepped into the office, we would head straight to the lab and stay there. Do, do, do ..... No toilet breaks. They are not sadistic, of course they allow toilet breaks. Just that when a reaction is running (which may last for hours), we can't really go anywhere). Having said that, I learned A LOT !!! Lab techniques that will so help me in my coming semesters .... not to mention my mentor is preparing me for the NMR licence test. YES, in NTU only certified, licenced people can use the NMR machine ....
I have to say I am really grateful and lucky to get this mentor. I am the only first year student(out of 6, the rest are year 3's) and she patiently taught me all the stuff that I usually overlook or too clumsy to be bothered about in lab. She actually put up with all those stupid questions I threw to her. People have been involved in this field for decades, who am I to question what they are doing? .. LOL ... me and my big mouth .... Having said that, they treated everyone equally. One can come and go any time, everything in the lab is personal effort. One person has his or her own project(s), no interference, no strict order to stay in late for work ... you plan when and what you want to do as long as you get the job done .... Come to think of it, I like this kind of working environment ... well, I'll see more as I go on ...
PS : HAPPY 4 MONTHS ANNIVERSARY ... =)
Basically, after my final exam (unfortunately it also marked the end of my freshman year .. so fast time flied ... =( ) ... I spent a week or so in Malaysia .... couple of days with my family and the others with friends ... gained back a few pounds .... =) ..
Anyway, everything came to an end last Friday when I returned to Singapore. That night itself we had a long, dreadful 3.5hours meeting for MSA Senior Camp in preparation for the upcoming Freshman Orientation Camp. Needless to say, MSA people in NTU are very semangat and extremely dedicated. Sleep deprivation was part of the routine .... I even put on makeup to act as a ghost to scare people in one of our programmes ...Well, I am not much like them. I took half a day off on Sunday because I was simply too tired ... I just didn't bother anymore and switched off my handphone and SLEPT !!!!!!!!! .... but I am sure it went on well ...
Monday was the start of my Summer Research. It is a Special Semester course that I signed up to gain some experience in the research field and of course to clear some credits along the way ....The Professot I worked with, thank goodness, is a French Professor ... Europeans tend to have a more relaxed schedule and working environment ... I am attached to his research fellow (a French woman) ....
What I do is really simple - help her (my mentor) out with her research. FULL STOP. Fortunately and unfortunately, so happened the stage they are in now is the experiment stage. Meaning that they have done all the background checks and theories, ready to put their ideas to the test. So, the moment I stepped into the office, we would head straight to the lab and stay there. Do, do, do ..... No toilet breaks. They are not sadistic, of course they allow toilet breaks. Just that when a reaction is running (which may last for hours), we can't really go anywhere). Having said that, I learned A LOT !!! Lab techniques that will so help me in my coming semesters .... not to mention my mentor is preparing me for the NMR licence test. YES, in NTU only certified, licenced people can use the NMR machine ....
I have to say I am really grateful and lucky to get this mentor. I am the only first year student(out of 6, the rest are year 3's) and she patiently taught me all the stuff that I usually overlook or too clumsy to be bothered about in lab. She actually put up with all those stupid questions I threw to her. People have been involved in this field for decades, who am I to question what they are doing? .. LOL ... me and my big mouth .... Having said that, they treated everyone equally. One can come and go any time, everything in the lab is personal effort. One person has his or her own project(s), no interference, no strict order to stay in late for work ... you plan when and what you want to do as long as you get the job done .... Come to think of it, I like this kind of working environment ... well, I'll see more as I go on ...
PS : HAPPY 4 MONTHS ANNIVERSARY ... =)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
