Murphy’s Law

I first heard this term from a gd fren of mine.. a long time back.. either when I was in secondary sch or JC.. oh.. those gd old days..

It basically means "if anything can go wrong, it will."

There are different versions to it too..
Here’s some..

- If anything simply cannot go wrong, it will anyway.
- If everything seems to be going well, you have obviously overlooked something
- Left to themselves, things tend to go from bad to worse
- Murphy's Law of ThermodynamicsThings get worse under pressure.
- The Murphy PhilosophySmile . . . tomorrow will be worse.
- Murphy's Law of ResearchEnough research will tend to support whatever theory.
- Murphy's Military Laws
If your advance is going well, you are walking into an ambush.
- Murphy's Technology Laws
A computer makes as many mistakes in two seconds as 20 men working 20 years make.
- Murphy's Love Laws
All the good ones are taken.
Availability is a function of time. The minute you get interested is the minute they find someone else.
- Murphy's Laws of sex
Before you find your handsome prince, you've got to kiss a lot of frogs.
- The chance of the bread falling with the buttered side down is directly proportional to the cost of the carpet.
- A valuable dropped item will always fall into an inaccessible place (a diamond ring down the drain, for example) - or into the garbage disposal while it is running.
- After you bought a replacement for something you've lost and searched for everywhere, you'll find the original.
- The other line always moves faster.
- The light at the end of the tunnel is a train
- Traffic is inversely proportional to how late you are, or are going to be.
- You will find an easy way to do it, after you've finished doing it.
- The wind will always blow opposite to your hairdo
- When you really need something, its either not available, or can't be found. When you don't need it, its either available, or lays around in plain sight.
- The difference between Stupidity and Genius is that Genius has its limits.
- Murphy's golden rule: whoever has the gold makes the rules.

I have no idea why I borught this up.. just felt like talking abt it.. =)

Six Thinking Hats - Edward de Bono

This is 6 strategies of thinking identified by Edward de Bono..

White Hat - Facts
Red Hat - Emotional thinking
Yellow Hat - Positive thinking
Black Hat - Critical thinking
Green Hat - Creative thinking
Blue Hat - Big Picture, sort of looking at it from all the viewpoints.

This is basically to strategically solve a problem by looking at it from various angles. By focusing on a particular approach at any one time, the group can be more collaborative than if one person is reacting emotionally (Red hat) while another person is trying to be objective (White hat) and yet another person is being critical of the points which emerge from the discussion (Black hat).

Example:
The directors of a property company are looking at whether they should construct a new office building. Economy is doing well, and the amount of vacant office space is reducing sharply.

White Hat
- Trend in vacant office space, which shows a sharp reduction.
- By the time the office block would be completed, that there will be a severe shortage of office space.
- Current government projections show steady economic growth for at least the construction period.

Red Hat
- proposed building looks quite ugly.
- Though it is highly cost-effective, people may not like to work in it.

Black Hat
- government projections may be wrong
- Economy may be about to enter a 'cyclical downturn', in which case the office building may be empty for a long time.
- If the building is not attractive, then companies will choose to work in another better-looking building at the same rent.

Yellow Hat
- if the economy holds up and their projections are correct, the company stands to make a great deal of money
- If they are lucky, maybe they could sell the building before the next downturn, or rent to tenants on long-term leases that will last through any recession.

Green Hat
- consider whether they should change the design to make the building more pleasant
- they could build prestige offices that people would want to rent in any economic climate.
- they could invest the money in the short term to buy up property at a low cost when a recession comes.

Blue Hat
- used by the meeting's Chairperson to move between the different thinking styles.
- keep other members of the team from switching styles, or from criticizing other peoples' points.

This rational decision making process allows relevant emotion, negativity, positive thinking and even creativity. Thus, decisions made are more sound and resilient.

MARRIAGE!!! GREAT NEWS!!

There's no word to describe exactly how I feel rite now!

One of my best fren just told us that she is plannin to get hitched in Jun '09. Hopefully, the 19th since that was the day they met.. how sweet!!! i hope that the date works out auspicious for u both! U shd haf seen the looks of joy on our faces when we heard the news! hey.. send me the pic we took earlier.. grinnin like Cheshire cats.. I wanna post it here..!

She was talkin of venues and guest list and attires! (actually more like we were talkin abt it..) We (my gfs n i) need to get the SAME sari 2 wear.. we haf to start shopping soon!! =) The bride-2-be got the idea after seeing Elizabeth Hurley's indian wedding with the bride's family in pink and groom's in orange.. Well, we can't refuse the bride-2-be, can we?! Unfortunately, I can't seem to find such an image on the net dear.. can u send me the pics if u haf them? I'll post it here.. Many sites only have images taken at the wedding in Wales.. According to many sites, women attending the wedding had been told to wear pink saris. Male guests including David Beckham and Elton John had to wear turbans and kurtas in orange.

My frens are also contemplating on gettin their own apartment.. naturally, we can haf sleepovers there.. haha.. Jokes aside, I think this is a major step and it is also the start of the rest of their lives together.. I couldnt get my jaw to shut close after I heard this! I can understand how overwhelming this must seem.. with all responsibilities kickin in..

As unofficial bridesmaids, we are gonna pitch in to plan the wedding of cos! First and foremost, we are gonna start a grp blog to document steps taken for the weddin as much as we can.. from the preparation to the actual wedding.. We will add to the blog a countdown timer of the date of the wedding once its been set.. then we will sit on the wedding committee chaired by the groom.. hehe..

hey gfs, haf i missed out anythin? I couldnt wait to get home n blog abt this!! Pls let me know.. there's SO MUCH to do.. SO LIL time!! there's less than a yr to plan this whole wedding!!

Deepz darling n Priveen bro.. We wish u all the best! WE LURVE U BOTH!

happy bday Simin...

I thoroughly enjoyed dinner with my maersk gfs at the Sun Moon restaurant at Central.. wat a name! Happy Bday Simin! =)
esp the Tofu cheesecake! never thot i'd say this.. but Jap food is not too bad! (so long as its not raw!) haha..

the alphabet game..

I recently had the chance to read ‘The Dangerous Alphabet’ by Neil Gaiman. It is a tale told in twenty-six alphabetical lines (the alphabet is not in sequence though).

This prompted me to write my own… hehe..
It’s not a story.. it’s not a poem either..
It’s just some things that I wrote as they came to mind..
It may not make much sense,
But then again, those who know me will tell u that that’s just me..

Anu is the gal who writes this tale
Beishu is a figment of a distant memory
Calendar days or working days.. to-may-to, to-mar-to.. (tomato)
Doughnuts are best coated with plain confectionary sugar
Examples are useful, I’ve learnt, to prove a point
Falling in love is sinful
Giving up is the easiest thing to do
Hearts should never be worn on sleeves
Ice-cream should be licked not eaten
Jockeys should learn to grow a few feet
K9s are dogs, wolves, jackals, foxes!
Lunch with my fav bunch I love
Myriad of emotions running thru my mind
‘Nobody is stupid in this world’ is my mum’s fav line
Obsolete is the next word
Please, pretty please with sugar on top
Queen I am.. so treat me as such
Roses are red, violets are blue is the most written poem in autograph bks
Shallow are the thoughts of a suspicious being
Thoughts are what matter, the battle’s already won
U haf to be gorgeous for the world to recognize u
Vanna White is so pretty on the Wheel of Fortune
What in heavens has gotten into me?!
Xmas is not around the corner
Y is the world so cruel to me?
Zilch is the word that comes to mind!

Y don't u try it too? =)

Silver Olympics medal after 48 yrs!

I watched the table tennis match on Sun!
It was exciting at first.. but soon even though I was cheering them aloud, in my heart, I had already settled on the silver..

BUT a silver is still a medal! N I’m proud of these gals..

My dear fren wasn’t intereseted in watching it cos he said it's china vs china imports.. well.. I thot that was hilarious.. but I’m still proud of them..

Pulitzer Prize

Kevin Carter, the photo-journalist who won the Pulitzer prize but died soon after (pple speculate tat he may haf commited suicide).

The picture distinctly illustrated the poverty of the country.. famine in Sudan in 1994.. But the qn on everyone’s mind was how he could walk away from that child.. There were a lot of comments that he was inhumane and cold-blooded to leave the child to die..

But who are we to judge him.. If I had been in his shoes, I may haf been scared to approach the child for fear that the vulture may attack me.. And maybe the child did not die at all.. Maybe he crawled to safety..

Digressing - I remember talking about this to my galfren in Maersk.. in the ladies.. haha.. rem SLI? Haha.. I miss u.. I miss our chats in the loo.. =) I miss callin u all by ur initials.. SLI, LZH, CYP.. we were the four musketeers.. 1 4 all, all 4 1.. rem LZH? Hahah..

Long awaited continuation of NZ trip..

Hey Priyaz.. I just realised I havent actually updated much abt the NZ trip.. hehe..

well here are some pics.. will update more ltr..

I drove! haha.. way past the speed limit!! haha..

N Suresh got a ticket!! a speeding ticket.. it was lotsa fun being pulled over.. haha.. (Rogi, this does not reach ur mum's ears, ok!)

Our first meal which we both had a hand in.. rite from washin the veggies to washing the dirty dishes.. Here are some pics of that..

For those who weren't aware, Suresh n his housemates had a pet.. it was a freakin white mouse! Kudos to those who spot it..

A beautiful restaurant, Aqaba, where we had dinner once.. The two pillars in front of the restaurant were lited up with fire..

Here are some pics taken while travelling to different places in NZ.. Wellington, Taupo, Himatangi beach.. Everyone complained that we had the same pose in every picture.. Sorry guys.. but really.. I wish I had taken more now..

Check out the rainbow!

At the super windy beach.. I felt like I was literally gonna be blown away..

Playing with snow for the first time in my life..

I hope u enjoy the pics.. There's lots more.. =) but I've put up the nicer ones..

with regards to Longing..

With regards to my last posting "Longing", my fren was askin who I was referring to..

I'd like to clarify that I'm talkin abt my beloved... Elmo!

Here's a pic of Elmo who has his own pillow next to mine.. on my bed..

My darlin bro also likes to torture my Elmo.. making him do headstands..

drowning him in the gap between my bed and wall.. and making him sky-dive from my aircon unit...

What torture my poor Elmo goes thru.. but without fail.. he always sleeps next to me..

i love my elmo! =)

Longing..

I lie awake and watch you sleep,
am at ease as you breathe in deep.
Warmth of your body close to me I keep,
and there in your arms I fall asleep.

I hope to have dreams of you, my love.
Dreams of you, and you alone.
I long for it to be like this,
just like this, each and every night.

Friendship..

I miss my frens.. I really really really miss my frens..

Most of us have started working.. & it’s so difficult to meet up.. plus we have other activities after work.. sometimes I wanna make the effort to call them n chat with them.. But either sth crops up or I just tell myself ltr.. after this show on tv or after this assignmt.. Haiz.. it’s a big deal to just chat 5mins on the fone now..

I remember the long conversations… the many conference calls.. =) the numerous pool games at Mambo (where I rarely held the cue stick.. my fault though).. the lunches at various Pizza Huts across this country.. the sleepovers..

A fren told me, earlier today, that to be a fren, you have to close both eyes.. Meaning you have to accept your fren with all his/her flaws.. I know I have plenty.. n I just wanna say “THANK U!” to all my frens for being my fren!! =)
Lets meet up for lunch someday SOON..

Olympics..

It’s quite interesting that this year, Olympics and Singapore’s National Day are just a day apart! When I read the Straits Times before leaving for work today, I saw that our swimmer Tao Li had gotten into the finals for 100m breaststroke. It was being shown live at 10.24am on Channel 5 and Channel 601. I didn’t want to miss it... and luckily, I didn’t have to.. I managed to catch it on TV in my office pantry. Manged to convince a couple of colleagues to join me as well.. It was over before you could say ‘wat?’ And anyway, Tao Li came in 5th.

This reminds me of a time in Crescent Girls School when we had to be reporters for Special Olympics (or was it Paralympics?? Can’t remember now..)..

As a colleage put it to me, “There are a billion people in China; there are only 4 mil in Singapore. How will we produce as many talents as they can?” I saw a programme on TV which showed how children in China are trained from young. They were crying & being bent at all different angles and I even saw the trainer kick a boy.. It looked like torture to me.. How could they allow this? How can they allow such cruel things to happen just to earn medals?? There was an article in the newspaper about underage kids sent in for Olympics.. I wonder if that issue was resolved.. or was it a misunderstanding..
http://www.reuters.com/article/GCA-Olympics/idUSSP25419620080804

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/cs-080727-olympics-chinese-team-gymnastics,0,1246777.story?track=rss

Oh.. and u shd check out this blog: http://womensbioethics.blogspot.com/

Tradition; Good or Bad??

Yesterday was granny’s bday!! Happy Birthday Granny! =)
Everyone came over to celebrate the nation’s birthday and granny’s bday!

There was a programme on TV tat sparked off some hot topics in my home.. It was a debate on Indian traditions. These were some interesting topics that came up:

- Excluding widows from certain functions
- Arranged marriages
- Ceremonies before, during and after the wedding
- Ladies wearing the ‘thaali’ (nuptial string/mangalsutra) as a symbol of marriage
- Dowry

If one were to notice carefully, they all revolve around male domination… I feel that there are some that are close to the heart and affect us directly.. By ‘us’ I mean Indians in Singapore. I just wanna mention how I feel about these customs.

- Excluding widows from certain functions
This is a very real issue even in Singapore, where there are certain functions where widows are not allowed to attend or participate in. I think this is utter BS and that we should not even consider such a thing. For the benefit of my non-Indian frens, let me share an example with u. During a marriage, there are a few customary rituals which are carried out and widows can be present that they cannot participate. They cannot wear their ‘thaali’ or flowers in their hair or wear the ‘kumkum’. Let me post a question to all here.. What if it was your own mother? Would you exclude her from all these? The oldies always gossip and speak of how such misfortune may befall the to-be-bride.. But would not a bride want her mother’s blessings?? Hence, I think this is a ridiculous custom and I will not follow it. I’m extremely proud of my aunt who lost her husband of 22 years and refused to abide by all these ‘rules’. I want her to participate in my marriage and I will not take anything being said against her..

- Arranged marriages
Some lady for this topic mentioned that the honeymoon is the time to get to know your spouse. The unanimous reaction in my house was “WAT RUBBISH??!!” What happens if during that period, they realize that they can’t stand each other? They are already married for heaven’s sake! I’m so glad my parents agreed.. hehe.. ;)

- Ceremonies before, during and after the wedding
Some of these are pretty funny.. and have absolutely no logic, at least none that I or my mum or her mum know of.. Who breaks papaddums on each other’s heads? What a waste of food?! Think of all the poor people going hungry in Somalia! But there are some that I like too.. like playing with my spouse during the wedding, where we have to pick 2 objects from a pot of water.. so we have to dive our hands into it to fight for the items =) I’m fine with falling at my parents feet for blessings..

- Ladies wearing the ‘thaali’ (chain/malgalsutra) as a symbol of marriage
I’m not sure my parents agree with my viewpoint on this particular subject.. it’s quite sticky at home I have to say.. I dun think I wanna wear it.. I mean I’ll agree to wear it during the wedding.. but after tat I’ll probably not wear it.. Suresh, I know u have lotsa comments and I’m willing to compromise.. Some say it means subjugating women as they bow their heads down to let the guys tie the ‘thaali’. But to me, its not that cos the guys also fall at the ladies feet to wear the toe-rings for them wat.. For me, its more like an accessory. If our hearts are in unison, then why must we wear a symbol to identify that we are married? If they are worried that other men will propose to their wives; how abt vice-versa? Why not just be done with a wedding ring? How do u think the Chinese n Malay ladies survive? [Believe I may have spoken to some of my galfrens abt this b4..]

- Ceremonies before, during and after the wedding
This isn’t really practiced in Singapore; Hence I’m not gonna talk about it.. Can’t help but add that it is a ridiculous custom though!

Well, to sum it all up, there are some traditions that I love being an Indian.. but we should realize which are being carried out cos there is a reason behind it and which are being blindly followed.. N forget all that have no logic to it..

National Day!!

I just celebrated National Day at the Treasury (my office)..

We sang the national anthem, took our pledge.. and of cos sang a couple of classics ("There was a time...", "Stand up for Singapore") I felt like crying!! I miss celebrating national day.. I miss waving the flag.. I miss swaying to the songs! be it tat it's just one day of the year, its a time when I truly feel united with the rest of the Singaporeans.. I feel sooooo SINGAPOREAN!!

But now that I'm in the Civil Service, I won't miss it anymore!! =)
too bad it's not half day though.. haha..

To all my Singaporean friends, Happy National Day!

Exciting details..

Hey all, you should check out this website http://www.successwallpapers.com/ for free wallpapers with inspirational quotes.. Thanks Suresh for pointing it out to me..



A couple of days ago, after lunch with my colleagues.. we went shopping... I bought a earrings holder!! it's simply the best! sooo pretty and girlie... I immediately came home to hang all my earrings on it.. they were all previously stuffed in a box.. Here's a pic..




Only after hanging all my earrings do I realise that I've got sooo little.. ahha.. time to buy more! =) the kinda things that make me happy..