Hello to my soccer Kakis

Or to better phrase it, my ex-soccer kakis.
Back in our NUS days, we were a bunch of friends united by our passion for soccer, despite our less than stellar soccer skills. We played weekly even after our graduation, enduring the occasional spot-checks by NUS security ("Where's your matric card ???") as well as the relentless Singapore Sun (which at 2pm in the afternoon, isn't exactly the best for getting a sun-tan, more of sun-burn...)
With members getting married, having kids, attendance started tapering off and we merged with another soccer gang just so we could have enough to form a team.
With the introduction of Jarren, my soccer days are temporary on-hold as well. Hopefully, I can be back soon...
In any case, just wanted to say hi to any YTFC members who drop by my blog. Do drop a comment as well and vote for my online poll on the right.
Maybe this blog could serve as a good contact point for the old gang and succeed where the yahoo group failed ;-)

Lizard Love Story

Received this video by email and found it to be really hilarious. Click on the link and view it :-)

http://www.mediamax.com/tbgoh72/Hosted/%C2%A8%C3%94%C3%A9%C2%A7%C2%A8%C2%A1lovestory.wmv

Toys for Christmas ?

On the issue of Christmas, read this interesting post about actual toys that made it to consumers before parents realized the actual dangers posed by these "toys" -> http://www.radarmagazine.com/features/2006/12/toys.php

I think I remember seeing the flying barbie doll on TV adverts. But cannot confirm about its lethality since I do not play with dolls (and definitely not in adulthood, since the toy was launched just some years back...)

We too had to be careful about toys for Jarren. What we look out for are sharp protrusions (especially metal parts), small parts that can be swallowed, as well as toxic material (eg plastic) since boy-boy puts everything into his mouth. Probably there will be more to be careful about when he grows up and the toys available gets more complex (and dangerous as well....)

Singapore stabbing on YouTube

Found this video on You-tube.
It depicts the stabbing of a Chinese girl by her ex-boyfriend. Was reported on the news some time back.
Could be rather bloody so be prepared before you click play.

Personally, was shocked just by looking at the video and I wonder what my reaction will be if I happened to be the one standing next to the incident. Would I react and save the girl ? or cower in fright ? or remain too shocked to react ?

I think those 2 gentlemen (not in attire but in action) deserve some accolades for daring to interfere, even if it was not early enough to save the girl from injuries (I think I read that the lady was quite badly hurt...)

"I live in Singapura" MTV

Here's a Singaporean MTV for you to enjoy :-)

Google function

Here's some tips on how to use google for something other than just internet searches ->
http://www.informit.com/articles/article.asp?p=675528&seqNum=1&rl=1

However, not all of the features work since they are US-centric, meaning they only work if you are in US. I'll given them a try and here's the ones that are useful for the rest of us (meaning non-US. Do you notice the pun ???)

Enter the following into the google search box for these functions
1) Calculator: Just type the equation
2) Mathematical constant: Type the constant
3) Measure conversion: Type "X unit in other_unit" (eg 5 inch in meter)
4) Dictionary: Type "What is XXX" (eg try - 'what is meritocracy' and notice its relevance to Singapore...)
5) Glossary: Type "Define: XXXX" (eg 'define: meritocracy' to find other ways we can interpret this)
6) Hard Fact: Type exact question (eg 'Prime Minister Singapore' - Guess what, it returned Goh Chok Tong. Seriously outdated...)
7) to (13) Not relavant for rest of us
14) Type singer name (Doesn't work for andy lau though, in the same way as mentioned in the article. But you still get the usual websites.

Try the last one especially if you are a fan of science fiction ;-)

Sci-fi Santa Clause

Since Christmas is on the horizon, have a read at this interesting article on how Santa Claus could be justified by Science ->
http://www.thesun.co.uk/article/0,,2-2006570383,00.html

It seems that most things you believe in when young turns out to be myth / fantasy when you grow up. That's where science fiction comes in, I guess, for those of us who want to linger in our childhood fantasy. I would say fantasy is part of that dream as well but many of those fantasy stories (eg Lord of the Rings) are anything but childish.

We brought Jarren to the Xmas light-up tonight. I wonder what will we tell him about Santa Claus when he is growing up. Should we stick to reality or just let him enjoy a few years of fantasy ? I am tempted to do the latter...

Wet Nurse - Nei(3) Ma(1)

Read this interesting article ->
http://newpaper.asia1.com.sg/news/story/0,4136,118706,00.html?

I know breast-feeding is tedious, having watched my wife gone through it. She had to periodically express the milk, then heat it up and give to boy-boy. During weekdays, we brought the milk every morning to the baby-sitter.

Wonder how she would have felt about such a service...
Could be a great business opportunity to do the same in Singapore, in my view :-)

Vista versions

And lastly, here's an article for those thinking of switching to Vista, the new Microsoft operating system.
http://www.extremetech.com/article2/0,1697,2068721,00.asp

Apparently, there many varieties to choose from but I suspect I won't be switching for a long time more. Am perfectly happy with XP for now.

Surprising comparison

Was roaming through the internet when I found this interesting article ->
http://www.littlespeck.com/content/politics/CTrendsPolitics-061126.htm

Just wondering if anyone knows how true this report is. I never did know our politicians are paid that much more compared to big countries like US and Great Britain.

Ultimately, I know it is difficult to justify exactly how much is enough (well, I am always complaining about my pay) but a direct comparison versus other countries seems to be fair and square. Have anyone read about this in other news report in the papers or elsewhere ?

Total Annihilation, but never dies

Check out this interesting website -> http://taspring.clan-sy.com/

For those who have played total annihilation before, this should be quite an interesting website. Apparently, it is living on as an open source project. Have not tried the game itself yet but if anyone is interested, do download it and let me know how it goes.

Good thing is that it's free. And it's probably still more fun than 50% of the games that cost money, based on my experience with the original TA game.

Something to ponder about

Take a look at this interesting article -> http://www.singaporeangle.com/2006/11/non-sequitur-economics.html

It really provided me with a better view of economics and the way it affects our lives. Wonder why we were never taught about such relationships back in school. Would have made the dull subject of economics much more interesting if we were shown how it linked back to real life.

Coming back to the crux of the article, the author stayed away from making conclusions and instead left the reader to infer his own based on the facts and figures that he provided. I think this is a good example of objective reporting. Of course, the article is based on a certain theme and the information will of course be linked to that. Hence no article can ever be totally objective but that's being too theoretically.

If you like the article, you might want to read the other interesting post about the recent Chinese movie (starring Andy Lau). And maybe check back regularly for other interesting posts by the author (have added his link on my page as well)

Ultimate sacrifice by dad

Read this article about how a dad saved his son and wife but ended up losing his life instead -> http://newpaper.asia1.com.sg/news/story/0,4136,118349,00.html?

Felt really touched, especially when reading the last paragraph about the reactions of the kids.

It is often difficult for a father to express his love and affections, and usually it is rather through actions than through words. It was the same with my dad, and I guess it will be the same with me. I might be able to say it now to Jarren since he is just a baby but I expect to be less open about my affections when he grows up...

I would want to have the courage to do the same should a similar circumstance happen but often this is decided at the spur of the moment and not something you can rationalize and predict before that.

And that's why I hate to answer those hypothetical questions that my other half like to ask.

Online Video sharing

Here's an interesting link with a comparison of various video sharing websites
http://www.lifegoggles.com/?p=150

Apparently, there's quite a number of them, whereas I was only familiar with You Tube and Google Video. You can take a look at the detailed analysis of each of the web portal as well as view the various embedded videos, then make your own conclusion.

Financial Planning

Lately, was inspired to do a little bit of financial planning. The impending GST hike, the gradual edging towards retirement age, together with the increased burden of our new baby, means that the purse strings might need to be tightened.

Besides, it is only fair that we provide some money to help Jarren ease into his adulthood 21 years later. Whether this is for his education or otherwise will depend on the situation.

Found a website talking about some steps to follow. Although it is specific to US citizens, some of the tips are generic.
http://financialplan.about.com/od/personalfinancebasics/a/AnnualCheckup.htm

I took the following steps:
1) Take stock of existing fixed deductions per month
2) Keep track of expenses for a month. It is sufficient to just track the bank account fluctuations. There are tools to track your everyday expenses as well but I find it too tedious to follow thru.
3) Total your monthly variable expense, add to the fixed deduction and verify the amount of savings you can expect to get per month
4) For better accuracy, the monthly expense could be averaged over a few months since it is normal to fluctuate (eg Wedding dinner ang-bao...)
5) Based on monthly saving, set a target for saving each year

With this yearly target achieved, I will feel more relieved if there is any extra and we can use this then for our vacation and special purchases (eg PDA phone, TV...)

On top of this, I also evaluated all my existing investments/insurance/fixed Deposit
1) Fixed Deposit - It is best to keep moving the FD around to "new" banks, since banks offer "promotion" rates for "new" funds. This can be about 3.0+% currently. Forget about the miserly 0.xx% you get normally.
2) Investment should be checked for the rate of return. This website is really useful -> http://www.banksite.com/calc/neir. Compare and ensure that the risk you are taking is worth more than the fixed deposit interest rates you can get, risk free.
3) Insurance should be checked if they are matching the projected return rates. Nothing much you can do here if it doesn't but at least you will be aware.
4) Take a look at CPF. For ordinary account, you can choose to repay the mortgage or invest in unit trust for example. Always compare with the CPF rates, currently 2.5% -> http://mycpf.cpf.gov.sg/CPF/News/News-Release/N_16AUG2006.htm. For Special Account, investing is another option but only if you think the returns are more than 4.0%. Remember that the CPF rates can change every quarter.

Just for fun, I checked how much fund I expect to accumulate by the retirement age of 55 (if possible). Let's just say it is not close to making me a millionaire yet. Maybe I should have started younger but you always think there is plenty of time more before you reach middle-age.

Barter Trade

Here's an interesting site -> http://wanttotrade.sg/

It's based in Singapore and might be a really interesting site if the traffic there starts to increase. At the moment, there appears to be insufficient offers to really attract my attention.

But, what the heck, everything needs to start small. Maybe will check back some other time in the future and see.

Fund transfer worries

If you are like me and worried about making a mistake during fund transfer, it appears that it is still legally possible to sue the receiver if he refuses to return you the money even after knowing it is a mistake.

At least according to this report on the New Paper.
http://newpaper.asia1.com.sg/news/story/0,4136,117981,00.html?

This should be given more publicity, both to allay our fears and also to make people aware of their moral obligations ;-)

Liverpool - Yawn...

Woke up in the middle of the night to watch the goalless display by Liverpool.
Hardly inspiring and the the team that came closest to scoring was Boro. I think Yakubu it was who somehow failed to stroke the ball into goal from 2m after Reina parried a header right into his path.
Thought Liverpool dominated, there was hardly any real goal attempt at the other end to make me feel justified to have sacrified the much needed sleep.

Creeping Crawling Video

Ok, here's the video of Jarren crawling forward.

Have to rushed out videos so that they don't become stale ;-)

Also, when we picked up baby from auntie today, found that a friendly neighbour has created a cute portrait of baby. Take a look



And he's only in primary three. Talented, right ?

I like the way he captured baby's "receding hairline" + slight Dou(4) Ji(1) Yan(3). For a young artist, this is quite a feat.

Daddy's life

As another weekend comes by, can't help but think about the changes that my life has gone through after the arrival of Jarren.

Have not joined my soccer kakis for months now. That's really contributed to my waistline.
Going for some jogging now but it's really easier to gain than to lose weight when you are middle age.

Have not installed any new computer games as well.
Instead my computer time has been concentrated on editing my baby's videos, besides the usual "housekeeping" stuff. Even my blog is mainly on my baby.

I can personally vouch that life after your first child can never be expected to be the same.
Your whole world seems to revolve around him.

Free time ? The only free time is when he is asleep or when my mother in law is around to help out.

My wife and I have divided our roles clearly. I am in charge of "entertainment" while she takes care of food and maintenance (housework...)
Not the most efficient division of labour but I'm comfortable with it.

Calin seems to feel that this makes Baby closer to me but I guess it's only fair since Jarren has been closer to her for the first 9 months of his life :-)

Registering online but afraid of SPAM ?

Here's your saviour -> http://2prong.com/

Once you click on the link, you will automatically receive a usable email address to use for such registrations.

Then simply wait on the webpage for the return mail and then do the usual activation procedure.
No worries then that your real email will be exposed.

PS3 dissected

Here's an interesting post about the internal "organs" of the PS3
http://blogs.business2.com/utilitybelt/2006/11/sonys_loss_is_a.html

Do take the costing information with a pinch of salt, since it is likely to be over estimated.
But we can safely assume that Sony is indeed subsidising the PS3.

I can safely say that subsidised or not, this is still way above my budget.
And better tighten the belt in anticipate of the GST hike.

Babying forward

Today, Jarren achieved another milestone. He is now officially able to crawl forward:-)

It all happened quite suddenly since he was still doing his usual "backstroke" and "merry-go-round" just the night before. But auntie said he was crawling on the mattress during the daytime and I decided to try him out when we were back home. And sure enough, he proved that he is now officially a baby crawler...

Took some videos of him but no time to get it ready for Youtube. Will post them on a later date.

GST Hike - Yes or NO ?

Heard about the proposed GST hike on the news (up from 5% to 7%).

I understand the rationale that the government needs to generate revenue to provide more support for the lower income (especially in view of the recent press coverage of MRT suicide cases). However, I'm just not sure if a GST hike is the right approach.

Found an online petition website at http://www.gsthike.com/index.php
I joined at 1292 and my guess is the number will shoot up quite quickly.

I am not anti-government or anything but my reasoning was this:
"GST does not necessarily tax the rich more than the poor.Businesses simply pass the cost down and this raises the cost of living. Unless necessities like food, transport, medical are exempted from GST, then both the rich and the poor suffers, Rich less since they are afford what they spend anyway. How about taxing the higher income more instead ?"

It's like telling an badly injured person that, "Yes, I would like to help you but to do that, I need to first cut you with a knife. Don't worry the bleeding will be minimal and I'll even bandage that up (NSS, Work Bonus...)"
I'm not sure if that would sound entirely logically.

Think about it. Then again, maybe the government's already decided and there's no turning back. I'm hoping they'll prove us wrong this time.

Wireless for free - Just be patient

Here's some info on the upcoming free wireless network for Singapore.
http://www.fiercewireless.com/node/7906

If you are thinking on getting a PDA-phone, this might be a good time to insist on one with WIFI.

And the poor student who got caught for stealing his neighbour's WIFI connection should be feeling really stupid now...

Good things come to those who wait.
And we will need to do that while the network get readied. Hopefully not because the free network is too slow ;-)

More on time share

An interesting article about the on-going time-share scams that continues to plague the heart of Singapore in Orchard Road.
http://newpaper.asia1.com.sg/news/story/0,4136,117341,00.html?

So it seems that the recent phone calls I have been receiving are not unique.
Besides the one I mentioned in my post some weeks back, have also received 2 more phone calls, which suspiciously sounds like the usual Time-Share trick again. Of course, I professed to be disinterested and hanged up on them.

Wonder why the authorities cannot put a stop to this.
I'm sure the foreign owners of such Time-Share companies are not the foreign talents we are trying to attract...

Time flies

Here's an interesting scientific study on time. And how it sometimes blazes away and other times drags like heavy chains.
http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg18925371.700

Was reminded of this after reading an email about an ex-colleague's retired life in UK.
Filled with holidays, hobbies and time with loved ones. I think he must be wondering how to slow the passage of time so that these moments of joy can last forever.

Wonder how many local retirees can claim the same...
Looking at the poor uncle sitting motionless and staring into space in the void deck, I rather doubt it is the same. What will it be like when it's my turn ?

Soccer - Team Sport, or not ?

After watching Liverpool slumped to another defeat, and thinking about the key moments of the match (in particular the 3 goals we conceded), I come to the conclusion that soccer might not really be a team sport after all.

Sure, you need all 11 guys to make up the numbers but when you look at the defining moments of the game, it really boils down to the one or 2 individual that made the killer blow. The first goal comes down to really one splitting pass, one insightful run into space and a simple tap in. The 2nd goal was again from a great defense splitting pass and a (lucky?) shot through the legs of Reina. The 3 goal was a case of poor marking (theoretically a team effort but probably boils down to either Gerrard or Risse who did not pick up the run of Gallas).

Like in real life, the final result of a team is often decided by individuals, whether it is a stroke of genius leading to a miracle or a lapse of concentration leading to disaster.

And Liverpool's fate is aptly summed up by the dejected look on Gerard's face at the end of the game.

Baby Laughter

One good thing about Jarren is that he loves to laugh. I think he stared laughing since 2-3 months. Some say this is just reflex action but he usually laughs when you play with him so I don't think so.

When he laughs, you tend to forget the difficult times. Here's a video I took of him just yesterday, laughing along with his mummy. Actually he was already do this for about a minute before I rushed to get my videocam.

Thinking back, he's becoming much easier to handle nowadays, compared to the first 1-3 months. Back then, he used to get cholic sometimes and that was really hell. I remember the first times it happened, we were totally freaked out. He would cry non-stop for up to one hour. Nothing you do could relieve his pain and we felt helpless.

I once rushed to get my mother-in-law to help (after midnight...) and on one occassion, we even sent him to KK hospital in the middle of the night. By the time we reached the A&E, he was happily sleeping away. To top that, he got hungry while we waited for the doctor and we were feeding him halfway when the queue reached us.

The dcotor did a quick check and found nothing wrong. But that's expected since Jarren was already fed and these cholic "attacks" last only for a period of time. We later learnt that cholic could be relieved by rocking actions and maybe the car trip to the hospital did the trick as well.

Anyway, am glad that all those have past. Just hope to see more happy days ahead :-)

Blogging - why ?

This question popped into my mind when a friend of mine remarked that I will be the last person he imagined to do a blog.

Thinking back at his remarks, I do have to agree as well. I tend to be rather reserved, especially with regards to personal feelings. I'm not the type that will spill all my inner feelings, even when it is to close families and friends.

If you ask me why, I'll also find it hard to justify. It could be my inner belief that men needs to keep their feelings bottled up. Ok, so maybe this sounds too MCP, but we all have our own guidelines on what to do and what not to do.

I have found it uncomfortable to bare my inner thoughts to others, preferring to keep them hidden and to be explored alone, in my own privacy. This is how I deal with grief for example. And also anger. Friends and colleagues often say they don't see me getting angry but now you know why ;-)

I have to also agree that this might not be the best option but some things are just impossible to change.

Maybe this blog will be a step in the right direction...
But then again, even this post feels awkward at times. But what the heck, will post it anyway since I have already written it :-)

Baby-sitting

With the crawling video I posted, decided to do a sitting video of Jarren as well.
As the Chinese saying (or was it Hokkien saying ?), "Sit at 7 (months), Crawl at 8".
These videos were taken about a month back and just to clarify, we did follow the traditional order. So we taught him to sit, then followed that up with crawling.

Unfortunately, he seems to fall more often than he sits.
But he's improving now and can actually sit for quite a while. But a video of baby sitting is less interesting than a video of baby falling ;-)

There seems to be also a correlation between his tendency to fall and the flooring material. If he is sitting on bed or mattress, then he tends to fall over easily.

If he is sitting on the wooden platform, then he seems to know and doesn't fall that easily. Of course, we'll be there to grab him before he "kock" his head.

Goes to show he's an intelligent babe. Takes after me, of course.

Crawling Techniques

Here's a demonstration by Jarren on how to crawl - baby style.

Ok, so he's still learning but it sure seems to be an effective, though unorthodox way to get around.
Now he just need to start learning how to crawl forward instead.

'Cake' - Cutting (Edge) Science

Forgive the pun but there really is a scientific theory dedicated to cake cutting. Read this link if you don't believe
http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn10452-solved-the-perfect-way-to-cut-a-cake.html

Makes a whole lot of sense if you ask me.
I would gladly give up a slice of strawberry in exchange for more chocolate coating ;-)

Baby Outing

Here's another Baby video for you to enjoy
This time, it's a compilation of 2 outings we had. One to West Coast and the other to the Botanical Garden.

Tools of the trade ?

Here's a list of interesting websites that I have found useful while maintaining this blog. Best of all, they are all free :-)

http://lilypie.com/index.html - Interesting baby related milestone chart, also for those important anniversaries you need to remember (to avoid being skinned alive by your other half...)
http://www.statcounter.com/ - Counter with actual usage data logging (country, ISP, referring page)
http://www.mediamax.com/ - Web-hosting of files (eg photo, video. Free 1GB)
http://www.youtube.com/ - Popular video hosting site (for most of Baby's video)

Still new to this blogging business but these websites have provided most of the tools I need, for now.

Scientific Diet

Here's some interesting research on obesity.
http://www.newscientist.com/channel/health/mg19225760.900

If the research is correct, then the top diet plan would consist of:
1) Sleeping more
2) Turning off the airconditioning (and work in this sweltering heat ???)
3) Smoking (and maybe die from lung cancer ?)
4) Stay young forever (Like Alan Tam ?)
5) Take less medicine (And die from your sickness ???)
6) Avoid the haze and pollution (As if we don't already know this...)

The rest of the research about genetic inheritance doesn't bode well for any diet plan. Basically you are screwed (pardon the language) for life if you have fat, older parents...

Come to think of it, what exactly is the use of this research results if we can't really apply it to our life ?
Ok, maybe sleeping more is a great idea but it's kind of hard given the new addition to the family.

Jarren's progress

Got this new ticker tracker for Jarren (See top of page). So he's already 7 months old. More than halfway towards his first birthday.

Well he's starting to "crawl" a bit, I guess, but it is all backwards for now. And he likes to turn around in circles... I like to place him on the wooden platform in our living room and watch him do his exercises. Normally, he'll play with the "Alphabet Pal" caterpilla toy for about 10 minutes, then get bored and start yelling to be carried.

Not much vocalisation, just the usual yelling. Wonder when he will start calling me Papa...

He's starting to be more demanding though, using his small hand to beat you when he wants you to carry him over to somewhere else. Guess that's what daddies are for :-)

Comments ?

Well, was wondering if any of my friends are visiting this blog.
Sent out the invites, saw the visitor count increase but not sure if these were my friends or if they were just passer-bys.

If you are a personal friend of mine, feel free to drop a comment so I know you were here :-)
Was hoping this blog could serve as a point of contact for us, given how busy we all are...

As a start, maybe you could comment if you could view the wmv file format that I use for my videos.

If so, might prefer to host that on mediamax instead of using Youtube.
Youtube public videos might not be appropriate for some of my private videos...

Any other comments will also be fine, or maybe even just a hi.

New Scanner - Epson CX3900

Just purchased a new scanner, an Epson CX3900.

Initially, thought of buying a normal printer but found that these all-in-one printers (photocopy, scan, print) were well within affordable price range. We managed to get it for only S$175 at Sim Lim, which was a good bargain.



The first thing I scan was this studio photo of baby. Cost us $18 to purchase from the studio but now I can scan and print an 4R copy for only 20 cents, which is the price of the glossy print paper.

Don't you think he looks stylo ?

A chip off the old block ?

Here's a photo of mini-me in a similar position to me-mini.
Any similarities ? Similar smile but my forehead seems higher...

Lie Detector

Read about a lie detector software that works on Skype phone recordings
http://www.kishkish.com/sam/vsa/

Now, imagine if this could be done on any voice recording.
Technically, this should not be too difficult since the Skype phone recordings are nothing special as well...

Will that be a boon to society or will it create even more conflicts ?

Ever heard of white lies, and that "a little lie never hurt anyone" ?

Funny Singapore Comics

Found 2 interesting blogs that provides alternative Singapore style comics. Have fun :-)
http://www.insanepoly.com/blog/
http://seijieiga.blogspot.com/

Also take a look at this interesting Youtube video, a parody of the recent "Elitist" saga online.

Test Post

Testing the email posting method provided by Blogger.

Probably should come in useful if you need to post something but do not have internet access, but do have email access.

Search other than Google ?

Found an interesting link with suggestions for unique and less known search engines. Guess most of us already use Google by default (and maybe a Yahoo, or MSN search)

http://oedb.org/library/college-basics/research-beyond-google

Jarren 1st Lantern

Well, here is it, a new baby video :-)
Ok so it is from footage that is rather old (lantern festival some weeks back) but finally managed to squeeze some time to complete the editing.

Enjoy...

Victimology

Interesting read off the internet.
http://www.lewrockwell.com/jarvis/jarvis103.html

And I thought Victimology was a term coined by Ah Bengs to explain their process of selecting potential targets using the universal question: "What are you looking at". Shows that there is always something new to learn about everyday ;-)

Free Anti-virus / Anti-Spyware / Firewall

To continue from the last post, noticed that Dell was offering the usual Norton Anit-virus with its package.

I'm not sure about you but I was really disappointed with norton's performance when I used to have it. It failed completely to detect spyware (which you need a separate Norton product for...) and you need to renew your subscription every year.

Well, I've since switched to freewares and am glad to say that I have had no major problems with malware eversince... And all for the cost of $0.

Here's my recommendations for each:
Anti-virus - AVG -> http://www.grisoft.com/doc/1
Anti-Spyware - Ad-Aware -> http://www.download.com/3000-2144-10045910.html
Fireware - Zone Alarm -> http://www.zonelabs.com/store/content/home.jsp

DELL or DIY

Was asked to help a relative buy a new computer. Initially, thought that buying from Dell might be better, what with all the recent hype about how cost effective they were. Made a trip down to Sim Lim Square to compare and realize that despite all I heard, it is apparently still cheaper to go the "DIY" route.

Ok, actually it is not really DIY anymore since the shops will install everything for you, mainboard + CPU+casing. All you have to do it connect up the monitor, speaker, mouse, keyboard and viola, it's all done.

You can get a quicker CPU, DVD burner and a good LCD monitor, all at a lower price than even the so-called Dell promotion I saw on their webpage. Flip-side is that you do not get customer support but guess there is always me to call upon for simple stuff ;-)

So if you need a new computer if you are able to tell a VGA cable apart from a power cord, would advise you to go the Sim Lim way. Heck, even the mouse and keyboard cables are color coded now so you can't even get that wrong !

Liverpool - turning the corner ?

Well, things does seem to be looking up now for Liverpool, winning 3-1 against a determined Aston Villa side. They looked really good during the first half, but relaxed a little after the break, which is probably normal even that the lead looked safe and they were probably starting to think about the upcoming midweek Championship League game.

As usual, the defence fell asleep for a second and let it a goal. Seems to be a trend nowadays, that the opponent will always score with their first real chance of the game.

Well, the results was positive anyway and to quote our past manager, "We've now turned the corner". And hopefully, no U-turn is on the horizon :-)

Here's the full match report
http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/match/last_match/match_report/index.htm

Byzantine Fault Tolerance

Came across this very interesting wikipedia entry.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Byzantine_fault_tolerance#The_dilemma

I think everyone must have heard the story of the 2 doors. One that told the truth and one that always lied. And how to ask ONE question only that ensures you know which door leads to the exit and which one will cause your demise.

Now extrapolate this to 3 or more doors with similar conditions and think about how to solve this dilemma. Apparently, the Byzantine generals have already thought about this and figured out how to ensure they will still come to a more or less correct decision. Or at least, that's my guess as to why this theory is named that way. The Wiki entry never did explain this...

Real Parenting Tips

Ok, so my parenting tips so far have not been much to crow about. But here's a cool website I found that gives some really good parenting tips.

http://mentalhelp.net/poc/view_doc.php?type=doc&id=10106&cn=28

Not to mention more development milestones for one to compare with, as I mentioned in a previous post ;-)

Reflections on a sad story

http://newpaper.asia1.com.sg/news/story/0,4136,116310,00.html?

Read this article about a family that lost 5 new-born babies. Knowing how much every one offspring means to every parent, my heart really goes out to them.

Being a parent means you have to constantly worry about the health of your little one, whether they are developing at the correct pace. I know they say that every infant develop at their own pace but you can't help but compare your little one's progress with another. And the advent of the internet means that there is now a VERY large database to compare with, potentially at least.

I think every kia-su Singaporean parent know what I mean...

World's biggest handphone

http://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/records/science_and_technology/gadgets/largest_mobile_(cell)_phone.aspx

Well I wouldn't call it a mobile phone. But I guess calling it a handphone (like we call it in Singapore) still makes sense, especially since you need an entire hand to press the button ;-)

Liverpool - What's wrong ?

As I watched Liverpool slumped to another away defeat, this time at the hands of Man U, I can't help but feel that it's deja vu again. Another year when things look promising, another year where the results have been anywhere matching.
Strangely, there is hardly any anger or despair, just a sense of resignation. Maybe after all these barren years, we Liverpool fans have grown used to it.

Or maybe it is just that I have had good practise supporting the Singapore Soccer team ;-)
Still remember all the hype and then the subsequent humiliations at Tiger Cup, Asean games etc...

Well I'm an optimistic guy so we'll just wait and see what this season brings. At least, it can only get better now, I hope...

Mediamax Web-hosting

Tested out another web-hosting site to see if this might be a better way than You-tube.
Got complains that the quality of You-tube video is not consistent.

http://www.mediamax.com/tbgoh72/Hosted/Baby_Workout_2.wmv

Jarren - Next Andy Lau ?

This might explain why the best looking actor/actress's offspring might not always end up as photogenic...

And maybe my boy-boy will have a chance to be the next Andy Lau ? Despite the not too favourable inheritance from me ;-)

http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn10366-sexiest-parents-deliver-average-offspring.html

Singapore-My Future ?

Read about the latest online spat on the papers and decided to check it out myself.

Here's the original blog entry by Derek, which sparked off the "debate"...
http://derekwee.blogspot.com/

You can follow up the comments (cross-posted on various other blogs as well) to see the heated responses. Ranging from the pure vulgar to those that started to pick on certain "elite" schools.

I think we are rather missing the point here, by letting a young girl's innocuous reply draw the attention away from a well constructed and insightful posting.

I too am nearing the midpoint of 30s. And I too have the same fear as Derek. This despite me having had a good career so far, rising steadily through the engineering ranks. When I look at the pace of changes, and the fact that the newer generation appears much more adept at these changes, I shudder at the thought of hitting 40.

And no, I am not afraid of changes. Throughout my career, I have always embraced changes but the fact of life is that there are always younger and more agile "competitors" out there. And this age discrimination by employers, whether justified or not, completes the self-fulfilling prophecy.

I do not ask for assistance from the government, nor anyone else. What I do is to plan for my future. To put as much away as I can, living for the day when society decides that I am "too old". I do not want to be a burden to my little one, who won't be 21 until I am at the offical retirement age of 55.

And yes, I too have listened to "over-qualified" taxi drivers complaining of the same. 20 years ago, engineers were one of the 3 respectable profession. Now, you throw a stone into the crowd and more than 50% of the time, you hit an "engineer". The only "iron ricebowl" are the lawyers and doctors (and maybe civil servant) and that's only because of the closed nature of these labour market. It is true that globalisation is a great social leveller. But it is difficult for one to be fair when you are holding the short end of the stick.

So let's divert ourselves away from all this flaming and hatred towards a young teenager who was (un?)fortunate enough to be born with her particular status. As a parent, I would sympathise with anyone who has to defend his child and I do believe this has all been blown out of proportion.

I do not have any solution for this problem, nor do I think the solution is a straight-forward one. But it would be great if an official statement can at least acknowledge this problem so that we can all start looking for a solution. And hopefully, before I reach 40.

Auntie Denise's gathering

Jarren at Auntie Denise's gathering

Or try this wmv version (you need CODEC installed on windows media)

http://www.mediamax.com/tbgoh72/Hosted/Baby_Denise.wmv

For those who are interested, group photo also available

http://www.mediamax.com/tbgoh72/Hosted/DSC00234.JPG

http://www.mediamax.com/tbgoh72/Hosted/DSC00235.JPG

Life's contrast

Waiting for the You tube uploading to be completed. Even with broadband, it can take a while. Thought I might as well take the time to reflect on today.

Attended a gathering organized by Calin's online friends. All of them were recent mothers (and the few fathers as well) and it was quite an eye-opener for Jarren to see so many "little people".

Met another mother with a really big baby, at least compared to Jarren. She was advised by the doctor to cut down his food intake. Guess it's a really early introduction to dieting... Makes me realize that everyone has his/her little problem that most likely someone else would never even think could be a problem. Here we are thinking of how to fleshen our Jarren up and there's another baby with the exact opposite problem.

Lesson to learn : Be satisfied with what life provides to you. As long as Jarren is healthy and growing well, I should be happy.

This lesson is further reinforced when I read of the man who jumped onto the MRT tracks at Boon Lay due to financial problems. Guess you'll never think life is good to you until you see the contrast...

Funny Lecturer - does such a thing really exist ?

Got this video link off Mr Brown's website. Really funny. Wonder why I never had such an interesting lecturer during my time.

Most of the lecturers I had were the best at bringing on sleep. Usually the LTs were so quiet you could almost hear the snores coming from the last row... Would be a weird thing to actually hear laughter in an LT. Unless maybe you had a real funny dream :-)

Cutest Baby Video

Jarren's cutest moments...

Youtube video of Mini-me's 1st month

Parenthood tip

Read this article on the internet -> http://www.technologyreview.com/read_article.aspx?id=17630&ch=biotech

It reminds me of a discussion I had with my other half. Well it boils down as to how we can be sure our little one is really in distress. You see, he's been picking up some attitude recently and have been throwing tantrums every now and then. Ok, basically everytime you put him stationary in one place (on your lap, in the cot...) he starts to brawl...
My wife wanted to give him the cold treatment but my heart starts to ache whenever I see his tears, thinking he must be genuinely in dis-comfort. The next thing you know, he breaks out into a smile once you pick him up.
Apart from a baby speech/cry translator, the proposal from those scientist might be the next best thing to assist clueless parents like me.

But oh I do love to see my little smile. Here's some samples

Me when I was mini

That's me when I was mini. Notice the resemblance ;-)

Second Photo

Second photo of mini-me, this time using public sharing of the file from box.net

http://www.box.net/public/f9ebd4mhk8

Close Shave with Time-Share

Hmm, was wondering exactly what to post on my blog and coincidentally, something cropped up. Another one of those time-share scam and thankfully, I did not get tricked. This, after I managed to search the internet and find a posting on crimeshare.com. More searches on the web also revealed that OT travel is actually Oriental Travels, a blacklisted time share company.

Here's definite proof that the internet is a life-saver at times. It keeps communication open so that we know about crooks like this.

I posted a message on crimeshare but not sure when it will appear there.
Reproduce it here:

"THanks to MeMM, I saved myself from a wasted trip down to Shaw House in Orchard. Similar to his/her description, I received a phone call from 68874995. Said the same crap and asked me to attend a presentation on Oct 21, 12:30pm. I kept asking if they were timeshare company but they keep insisting no, claiming it is some travel sale. I asked for their sponsor and they dared to say O.T. Travel. Did a check on internet and they are already blacklisted (aka oriental travel). When they called back to confirm their attendance, I righteous pointed out that I have found out about their scam from internet. This senior manager then took over and sound indignant, asking where I got the information from. I quoted "crimeshare" and hopefully they will learn now that they already have a stinking reputation online. And hopefully stop trying to pull the same trick again.

Well, but they did make me happy for a while thinking I really won a luncky draw. Guess there's no free lunch in this world (except 4D and Toto ;-))"

Here's the link to the post that saved me -> http://www.crimeshare.net/63.html

As a follow up, thought I will list the blacklisted Singapore companies here as well:
Emerald Network Consultancy
Emperor Resorts International
Event Plus
Global Sensation
Interval Resorts Network
Leisure Group Marketing (LGM)
LRD Consultants
Oriental Travel
Regency Leisure Development
Universal Privelege
World Resorts
Zealtz Corp Pty

If you receive phone call of any of these companies, just hang up on them.

First Photo

Not me, of course. But mini-me