Chang's not so handy tips on housewarming gift buying:

1. If you feel really generous (highly unlikely in the current economic downturn), call the hosts and ask what they would like to add to their house.

2. Since most people would not feel very generous, they would like to buy something else that's alittle cheaper. Avoid buying any decorative items, as people usually dislike disruptions to their very ATAS home decor. Your cheapskate decoration will just be a complete eyesore and thus relegated to the storeroom or probably recycled as a gift back to you.

3. Avoid buying any appliances, as some people strictly prefer certain brands or certain particular functions to said appliances. Like for example, if i would want a rice cooker, it has to be small and cute and round-ish looking. So appliances are bad, unless u ask beforehand, which would lead u back to #1, which you probably aren't generous enough for, cos it's just a housewarming.

4. Avoid bringing food, cos it might be so nice that nobody will eat the catered food by the host. Then it will make the host feel bad and even worse if said catered food was actually prepared by the host. So dun bring food, unless u make sure it doesnt clash with the host's food, and it can feed sufficient people. You don't want people to fight/bitch over your honey-glazed chicken wings.

5. Avoid red packets. Lacks sincerity. Singaporeans care alot about superficial sincerity, like they would like to know you are sincere in actions, though you might not be sincere in heart. Yes it just works that way. It's fake smiles everywhere, but nonetheless, no red packets, unless there's alot alot of money in it. Which you might as well just go back to #1 since you are so generous.

6. Bring wine. This is actually a very safe choice. Cos everybody likes to drink wine, it just makes people feel alittle bit more high-class, alittle bit more important. Like finally they're in high society, or whatever. Most people will likely bring wine, but it's ok. You can buy a cheap one and hide amidst the expensive ones. No one will know. No one can tell the difference in their little plastic cups. Not that they can tell the difference in some $500 crystal glassware.

Which now leads us to... Chang's not so handy guide to wine-buying:

1. Price matters. The taste of the wine is positively correlated to its price. The more expensive it is, the better it will taste. The increase in taste however, has diminishing returns. A $30 wine will probably taste like $10 more than a $20 one. A $40 wine will however taste like $8 better than the $30 one. So do ur math. Determine ur budget and buy the most expensive wine for your budget.

2. Grapes doesn't matter. 99% of the people you meet cannot tell the difference between the grapes that they eat. They can only tell between red and white wine. And nowadays the vineyards tend to mix grapes, so it really doesn't matter if u buy a merlot or cabernet sauvignon. Just choose the name that you like, or whichever that sounds the most ATAS to u. That's the most important part, cos...

3. You have to feel confident about your purchase! Once you are absolutely satisfied with ur $50 merlot, it will definitely taste good. And we all know how much you've actually forked out ($50, which is a steal for a good tasting wine), so it's gonna be a much more pleasant wine experience than if you were not confident about your $50 wine. So, give it some faith :)

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If you read the above bull-crap, you will realise that it applies to alot of other aspects in life. No kidding.

Finally visited my dentist again. Gave me 2 good thick wires, so much so that my teeth hurts like i've just put on braces. Pain is good, cos it indicates teeth movement. People who tell you that wearing braces doesn't hurt probably are progressing very slowly. It hurts.

I'm now listening to some Astrud Gilberto as I blog. Bossa nova, very loungy and forgettable. Unless it's some typical jazz standards like Fly Me To The Moon. Seems like every self-respectable jazz/bossa artiste must do a FMTTM recording. Cliche, but nice everytime. This is an example of a very very good song.

I'm actually getting very bored with the stuff i'm listening lately, as such i've reverted to my trusty Avantasia albums. Symphonic power metal never gets old somehow, but seriously speaking, there's only a few albums that i don't mind listening to over and over again:

Avantasia - The Metal Opera 1 & 2
Dream Theater - Scenes from a Memory + Live Scenes from NY
U2 - Go Home: Live in Slane
Red Hot Chili Peppers - Live in Slane Castle
and of course
Chang - Confessions of a Bedroom Rockstar (HAHAHAHAHA)

I tried to listen to Within Temptation again today, and surprisingly it sounded better than the last memory i had of it. Probably it's due to the fact that now i know WT has a very hot lead singer, which leads me to wonder if the female singers for the other metal singers are equally as hot and kickass. Probably not. It's really a rare find somewhat haha.

One legged supine bridge on swiss ball is killer. It's way harder than the video looks.

My celtics jersey seem to make me shoot better today. Less tired as well. I feel Ray Allen in me.

I want to share a very nice article on one of my favourite basketball players: Shane Battier (link). I love the entire philosophy on how he approaches the game, how he uses statistics to make better decisions on guarding, how certain things are uncontrollable in game, and certain things are definitely controllable in game.

You cannot be 100% sure that the ball will go in, but you can be 100% sure that you are taking your highest percentage shot (and you can work at it to increase the %). You cannot be 100% sure that you can prevent your mark from scoring, but you can make sure that he takes his least accurate shot at the worst possible angle/position. Alot of people dun understand this idea, but the way i approach the game is similar and i feel somewhat "vindicated" by this article haha. At least someone else understands.

There are things u can't control, there are things u can control. Control those u can as best as u can, and hope for the best for those you cannot. Isn't it similar to life?

Ok I've finished the Astrud Gilberto album. Not memorable. Every song sounds too same-y. But relaxing nonetheless. It will be "if i need to relax, just pop Astrud Gilberto". I can't tell you for sure which song is nice. Probably FMTTM.

Good night.

So my job search has ended. Thanks to everyone who helped and supported in some way. I must say it's quite a smooth process for me, or maybe it's the people at the company who are really efficient in processing my application.

Nonetheless, i hope it will be a satisfying job where i dun have to do so much OT, so that i can get more time to spend with my family.

With a job, comes the need to buy a house, or we will break the hdb income ceiling soon. I really dun think i can afford a condo.

With a job, comes prospective income. Prospective income leads to impulse buys, which is a pretty sweet Celtics training singlet. It screams Ray Allen all over for some arcane reasons.

Now i can re-focus on my FYP again, though all i really have to do is to clean up the language. Hopefully i can kickstart my engine soon. I'm getting kinda nua lately.

Hmm, ok dun really know what to say anymore. Happy New Year.

Ji Qing gave me some typical interview questions today to help me prepare me for my interview on Thursday. In a way, the questions felt kinda reflective, and somehow i haven't really given them much thought all my life.

So i shall try to tackle some of them now:

Qn: What makes me a good leader?

I feel that i'm blessed with good decision making and quick thinking skills that allow me to handle most situations in an appropriate manner. Also, i do feel that i have a way with people, probably due to my charm or persuasive-ness. People tend to listen to what i have to say, and value my opinions to a certain extent. I have a relatively high degree of proficiency or knowledge in most things that i do, which helps when i need to convince people on something.

A good leader is able to direct and orchestrate people to achieve goals. I think i can do that pretty well.

Qn: What makes me a good team player?

The more i grow older, the more i realise that there are alot more people out there who are better than me. Some people are really specialised, they can do something really well. I'm more like a jack of all trades, i can do most things pretty decently.

This team player concept cruelly hit me when i played for the NUS IVP basketball team. It's where all the seniors are way way better than me. Taller, higher, faster, stronger, more accurate etc. It's probably not possible for me to surpass their level within the season. So i learnt that i cannot be the "superstar" of the team anymore (used to be for NJC). So i gave up the ball, i set picks for our "superstar", i draw my defender away so that the superstar has more space to drive and work his magic.

I became the glue guy and slowly i relished this role of silent contribution. I realised that the process usually doesn't matter. What really matters is the final outcome/goal.

Qn: How can you be a team leader and a team player at once?

Nowadays, i prefer a more hands off approach to things. Let things run its course naturally and hope that everybody play their part and things move well. I will probably try to nudge the team along the way to prevent anybody from going off course, and if necessary take over control.

Qn: What is your greatest strength?

I would say it's my passion and dedication in the things i do. I like to give it all or none at all. To me the purpose in doing anything is to put in maximum effort, or else what for even start.

Qn: What is your greatest weakness?

(interview answer) I tend to get burn outs due to overworking. Burn outs do not feel very good.

(real answer) I formulate my own opinions based on my own observations on the things around me, and sometimes i admit that i can get very narrow-minded. But actually i'm very open minded at heart, really. I dun mind you smoking, i just feel it's very very stupid.

Qn: What qualities you have that can allow you to do well?

Shirui got it right this time. I'm very logical, efficiency-oriented and goal-oriented. I will always try to find the fastest and easiest solution to solve a problem. I've recently learnt Occam's razor and i find it very applicable in what i do. If there are 2 solutions, the fastest and easiest solution should be the better one.

Qn: What do i hope to achieve in my job?

Basically a stable income, so that i can get married, and a career is intellectually stimulating enough to keep me interested.

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I hope these are good answers. The icky thing about interviews is that you do have to "lie" somehow. Sometimes it's not good to be too honest. Honest = show hand/All in. That's a very risky situation to be in.