For Fruits Basket

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For Fruits Basket
by Ritsuko Okazaki

Totemo ureshikattayo
Kimiga warai kaketeta
Subete wo tokasu hohoemide
Haru wa mata tookute
Tsumetai tsuchi no naka de
Mebuku toki wo matte tanda

Tatoeba kurushii kyo datotoshitemo
Kinou no kizu wo nokoshite itemo
Shinjitai kokoro hadoite yukeruto
Umarekawaru koto wa dekinaiyo
Dakedo kawatewa yukerukara
Let's stay together itsumo

Buku dake ni waraatte
Sono yubi de me sawatte
Nosomi bakari kahateshinaku
Yasashiku shitaiyo
Mooku yamando yoomi
Nageki no yumi mo koete yukou

[*]
Tatoe kurushii kyo datotoshitemo
Itsuka atatakana omoide ni naru
Kokorogoto subete nagedaseta nara
Kokoni ikiteru imiga wakaruyo
Umareochita yorokobi mo shiru
Let's stay together itsumo

[*Repeat]


English Translation:
I was so happy when you smiled
Your smile breaks through the clouds of grey

Far from the sunny days that lie in sleep
Waiting with patience for the spring
When the flowers will bloom renewed again
Knowing there's more beyond the pain of today

Although the scars of yesterday remain
You can keep on living as much as your heart believes

You can't be born again
All though you can change
Let's stay together always

Results day!

Yay! I have officially graduated! Grades this semester are acceptable. Modules that I did not expect to do well, I actually did better than expected, while for those that I expected to do well in, ended up poorer than expected. Anyway, as tradition calls for, here are the grades for my last semester:

GEK2013	Real Estate Finance	C+
PL4206	Cognitive Neuroscience	B+
PL4208	Introduction to Counselling Psychology	B
PL4219	Advanced Abnormal Psychology	B+
PL4224	Child Abnormal Psychology	B

CAP: 3.51

Examination Status: 2nd Class Honours (Lower)

A very close call to a 3rd Class Honours!

S/U-ed the Real Estate Finance module so that isn't much of a problem. Not that it would make that great a change to my CAP.

Cognitive Neuroscience was a real surprise because I did not spend a whole lot of time on it for the exams. Either the rest wrote really badly or the professor really liked some of the points I put in (which weren't in the text but more from class discussion). On a side note, I still remember the scene in the examination hall for this paper. Really quite funny. The only paper where I was ridiculously calm while in the hall. It was also the one where I told the professor this is the 3rd time I am checking my address and where I saw others struggling with the paper while I walked to the washroom.

Counselling Psychology was a relief because I was simply not too well-prepared though I had my notes. It was one of those wasted opportunities =( Glad I did not get a B- though, because it was really an easy paper. Think my mid-semester essay really pulled this one up.

Then for Advanced Abnormal Psychology, grade was expected so I'm satisfied.

Child Abnormal Psychology was a surprise though. Thought I'd score at least a B+ for it because I thought I was really well prepared and answered the questions ok, but oh well, I think I know where I went wrong in that examination.

Now on to the Commencement and hope all goes well for the up-coming job.

Concert

Concert today!

Limelight @ Esplanade!
An Esplanade Presents programme

Tonight, 7.30pm, with Xinmin Symphonic Band and X-winds.
Tickets at $20
Esplanade Concert Hall

Here to see more details

"You are my property because I pay your salary"

I was talking to one of my professors that day and he made a very interesting observation about working attitudes in Singapore. He said something to this extent,

Employers think that just because they pay someone's salary/scholarship/grant, they own that someone.

Absolutely true in Singapore's case and also absolutely ridiculous, don't you think? Sometimes I think we are too narrow-minded and selfish, a country always thinking about chaining talents in through scholarships, yet this is also driven by reality. My professor told us of foreign countries where the government gives out scholarships but does not require them to work in a particular governmental organization. Instead, they are free to choose for whichever organization they wish to work for, as long as it is for a company which belongs to their own country. This would effectively mean they can work for a home-based company which is located overseas. It opens up a lot of opportunities for the individual, doesn't it? In addition, the scholarship money comes from tax-payers in the end, not the organization's, yet we are bonded to that organization.

A focus on developing the individual and country on a wider scale instead of concentrating only on the association. I doubt Singapore would be able to achieve that in the near future. For instance, consider the fact that many in the upper ranks would be unhappy when an employee calls in sick, or that they require a Medical Certificate (MC). If somebody is truly ill, do you really think he/she would be able to climb out of bed and head down to the doctor's? Consider the "medical leave" section in this following excerpt I found in an online job advertisement for a temporary data-entry position:

Absentee From Work: As this is a temp assignment, one is not entitled to any leaves. As this is a 24 Hours x 7 Days support, it is critical that at any time, there is one at work. Hence if one is not able to report for work, one is required to firstly find one’s own replacement withhin all the Data Entries Associates (there are 30 Associates in the team), once confirmed, one is required to notify the Team Leader of the official replacement. If one is not successful in finding a replacement, one must escalate to one’s Team Leader. If Team Leader is not succesful as well, one is required to report for work regardless of one’s request to be absent from work. If it is discovered that one is absent withhout a successful replacement, one’s salary will be deducted for the slot/s that are left vacant.

Medical Leave: If one is not able to report to work, administer the step above in "Absentee From Work". If one is not able to find a replacement even after escalating to one’s Team Leader, one is still required to report for work and to notify one’sTeam Leader of one’s medical condition. Regardless whether there is a successful replacement or not, all Medical Leave/s are to be accompanied by a Medical Certificate issued by a registered practioner. The MC/s has to be submitted to one’s Team Leader for verification, failing to do so will result in deduction of one’s salary for the slot/s when one is on Medical Leave.

This example may be for a temporary job, but I have a feeling it is also reminiscent of how it is like for a full-time job. I don't like it, how it is a common sight. What happened to "entitlement" to those MCs and plain leave of absences? I am assuming, of course, that the employees (or "us") are responsible people who would not abandon colleagues on a particularly important day.

Truly selling our lives for a monthly salary.

Fitness Fabulous

A friend of mine has a fitness blog you might want to check out if you:

1) are a fitness buff
2) are interested in getting started on exercising
3) are a NS man looking to increase your fitness level
4) need motivation to start or continue exercising
5) need new ideas for your exercise regime
6) are in none of the above categories but enjoy exercising

He seems to particularly enjoy what is termed, erm (correct me if I am wrong), "Cross Fit". His exercise regime consists of not only running but training various other areas of the body. He also recommends diets, talks about cross fit competitions and include various tips and stories regarding exercising in general.

For instance, I found this piece of information in one of his post particularly interesting and useful:

Dr Daniel Lieberman, professor of biological anthropology at Harvard University, has been studying the growing injury crisis in the developed world for some time and has come to a startling conclusion: 'A lot of foot and knee injuries currently plaguing us are caused by people running with shoes that actually make our feet weak, cause us to over-pronate (ankle rotation) and give us knee problems.

'Until 1972, when the modern athletic shoe was invented, people ran in very thin-soled shoes, had strong feet and had a much lower incidence of knee injuries.'

Lieberman also believes that if modern trainers never existed more people would be running. And if more people ran, fewer would be suffering from heart disease, hypertension, blocked arteries, diabetes, and most other deadly ailments of the Western world.

... ...

But at least you know you'll never limp again. Or so the leading companies would have you believe. Despite all their marketing suggestions to the contrary, no manufacturer has ever invented a shoe that is any help at all in injury prevention.




full story here

So if you do exercise to any extent, you might want to check out his blog, Fitness Fabulous, for an easy read.

I've graduated

I declare myself unofficially graduated. *rolls word graduated around in mouth* I don't know with what honours yet because a couple of the papers were quite bad. In any case, I know I'll graduate for sure.

Four harrowing years. Moral of my four years - don't be like me. If you need some tips on what NOT to do in your university life, feel free to ask me =p If you need tips on what you SHOULD do in your university life, you can ask me too, or just copy what that horribly smart person in your class does.

Ok, on to other stuff. Have to get myself and my life back together.

The lecturer said

Had a short and funny conversation with my lecturer in the exam hall during Cognitive Neuroscience paper. The university is verifying contact details of students because of the issue of the swine flu. The thing is that they check for every paper and I have 5 papers in total and today morning was my 3rd paper.

So when the lecturer came over, I told him,

"I've already checked 3 times."

He replied,

"Wah lao, what am I supposed to do?"